


Behind The Mask

by Lottery57



Category: Mother 3
Genre: Character Study, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Cross-Posted on Wattpad, F/M, I mean I say implied, Minor Swearing, My First Fanfic, My First Work in This Fandom, POV First Person, Spoilers, and it’s adorable, but it’s pretty obvious, cause they’re both robots and neither of them really gets it, implied Claus/Marshmallow, why is this pairing not done more
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-13
Updated: 2021-02-05
Packaged: 2021-02-05 21:03:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 19
Words: 89,506
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21424501
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lottery57/pseuds/Lottery57
Summary: The Masked Man... a being with no emotion, made only to serve his Master. But... is that all there is to him? What of his untold story and all he went through? What lies... Behind The Mask?
Relationships: Marshmallow-san | Li'l Miss Marshmallow/Masked Man
Comments: 6
Kudos: 37





	1. Resurrection

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some clarifications before we start: I owe a lot to this franchise: Mother 1 taught me how to be happy. Earthbound taught me how to laugh. And Mother 3 taught me how to cry. 
> 
> The last of those is my favourite in the Mother Trilogy (although I do think Earthbound does some things better than Mother 3) and upon beating it for the very first time last year, I was inspired to make my very first fanfic focussing on one of my favourite video game villains of all time - the Masked Man. His design (dude has a thunder sword!), his boss fights (both of them, although for different reasons), music (again all of them, Strong One (Masked Man), Battle Against The Masked Man and It Is Finished are all excellent, with the last of those being my favourite song in Mother 3 and the first time a video game genuinely caused me to cry) and of course, his story. I don't know why, but I just click with this guy and it's great.
> 
> Seriously, words can not describe how much I love this guy and if he gets in Smash , I will legit die a happy person. But this is just turning into a giant rant on why I love this trilogy (is that really a bad thing though?) so back to the point.
> 
> Firstly, spoilers for Mother 3 and Earthbound, so if you haven't finished/played those games yet, I highly urge you to do so because I will be spoiling almost everything about the Masked Man pretty much in the first chapter and there are going to be a fair few Earthbound references that serve as spoilers.
> 
> This fic is centred on said character and will detail how he became the Commander, as well as his own thoughts and feelings during the game. So please read, comment, critique (not too harsh, if you don't mind) and most of all, enjoy!

**Where am I?**

Looking around, I see many papers with intricate diagrams on them. Chemicals in test tubes with carefully measured quantities decorate the tables. Machines fill the room from one end to another. Most of these machines are around me. I conclude that this room here is a laboratory of some kind.

Having had enough of merely observing, I attempt to move. Only to find some wires keeping me in place, in a strange solution. Now that I properly look, my entire body seems suspended in this solution. It’s as if I were weightless, almost as if I were… swimming? What is swimming? My thoughts instinctively jumped to this, yet I have no idea what it is. I attempt to move through the solution but it’s a futile effort – the wires hold me in place and upon closer observation, glass surrounds me.

**Why am I here?**

Is this a prison? Am I being punished? What have I done? None of this makes sense. The more I think, the more I… the more I feel pain. It’s as if… I shouldn’t think. I should just… follow. I need to get attention. Draw someone here. The only way is to bang on this glass. I do so. For 5 minutes. And no one comes. I suppose I’ll have to wait.

Although I would prefer to explore this laboratory in circumstances that don’t involve me beingw trapped in a giant fish tank, I don’t have that luxury. So I make do and see what I can focus on this lab. The machines all seem incredibly advanced. Yet… that shouldn’t be. Machines like this shouldn’t exist. They can’t. They all seem out of place… but why? Why do I think they’re out of place? This is all perfectly normal.

**Isn’t it?**

There’s that pain again. Blistering away as if to guide me backwards. Instead of dwelling on the machines, I instead look at the papers. The diagrams are all very detailed and detail processes that I can’t quite see. I pick out a few choice words.

“Subject A” I read out aloud. There are some other words after but they are illegible from here.

Is that me? Am I a subject in some experiment? I want to feel angry, I want to feel sorrow but most of all… I just want to cry. Yet I can’t. Like with my curiosity, anger, sadness, fear – all of these just fade away. As if I don’t need to feel them. Because… Because they are useless. No! Emotions are what make us human! Unless… I’m not a human. Once again, these thoughts are pushed down by that searing pain.

“Code name – Masked Man.”

Masked Man. Certainly quite the ominous name. Whoever came up with this project certainly had a rather sick sense of humour. But ‘Masked Man’ is only a code name. Which begs the question – Who am I?

“Subject will… several enhancements… the first human chimera.”

Enhancements? So I’m going to modified, like some sort of robot? I am a human, not some action figure to be given accessories! But what if… I’m not? No, I must be human. Assuming that I am this subject they speak of, than I must be human, because these papers call me ‘the first human chimera’. I have no idea what a chimera is though. The word itself seems foreign. No, almost alien to me. Saying it feels me with unease.

Unless, a chimera is a robot. Yes, this makes sense. What if I am just a robot that looks like a human? For once, my curiosity isn’t punished, in fact my ‘brain’, if that is the correct term, seems to be guiding me towards this conclusion. But then, why was I created? Why do I need to look like a human? The first human chimera… will I be successful? Will I achieve my purpose?

My continuous thoughts cause much grief however, so I stop, for my health and due to the anti think program, as I have called it, kicking in. Despite this epiphany, my predicament remains the same – stuck inside this container. I furiously bash the glass in more and more. Not even a dent. I wait to see if anyone heard.

But no one came.

I suppose the glass, solution and walls all muffle the sounds I make. Maybe this is all a test, to see if I can get out. Another experiment. I may be a robot, but I’m still angry. I just want to break free of this. I see the machines around me. Some are connected to this glass tube. If I were to destroy them, I might be able to get out. But how?

And that’s when it comes to me. A ‘memory’, you could call it. I remember something large and imposing with many teeth. Metal armour and a cybernetic eye. A chimera. I went up against it. I was scared and angry. I wanted to make it feel pain, pain like it made me feel. But what pain did it cause me? My ‘memory’ is incomplete on this, I guess. I wanted to make it feel pain. So I called down justice from above. Justice? Is killing justice? It hurt me… but does that mean I should hurt it?

Lightning. Lightning from the sky. It responded to my fear and anger. Maybe… maybe it will do so now. I concentrate all my emotions, my fear, my anger, my curiosity, my sadness, all of it onto the machines and glass around me. Everything became clear, as if I have achieved perfection. I maintained my focus and saw the lightning, lightning rushing through my mind. And then..

“PK Thunder!” I shout.

**I shouldn’t have done that.**

It was almost as if a bomb had exploded right then and there. Glass lay around me in numerous shards, the solution spilling everywhere and the machines were unidentifiable. What power was this? How do I have it? It’s frightening in a way, I only meant to break one of the machines and I ended up blowing up the entire room.

Unfortunately, I have little time to dwell on this power as I now realise why I was in that solution - I’m incredibly weak otherwise. I was recovering, I assume and was probably at low power. Combined with that attack… I start to lose consciousness.

Thankfully for me, someone definitely did hear me trying to get out now. In fact, everyone in this laboratory did.

“He’s broken free!”

“How? That glass is reinforced!”

“I don’t know! It looks like he blasted the place! Get the doctor here now!”

As I look up, I swear I can see pigs. I must be hallucinating. I can feel myself being pulled up and although I try to resist, I’m far too weak to do so.

Before I completely lose consciousness, I remember one last thing. That chimera I saw? I fought against it.

**And I lost.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And thus, the first chapter ends. To be honest, it might not have been the best idea to write about the Masked Man for my first fanfic but... whatever. Reviews are greatly appreciated!


	2. Reconstruction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claus awakens to find himself changed - for the better or worse? And will he find any answers to his many questions?

It felt like a repeat of what I was going through before. Trapped and confused in an unfamiliar place. And I had just gotten used to my old prison. Only this time, I couldn’t see. It wasn’t that I couldn’t open my eyes, nor was it that I was too tired. Rather, it felt as if I didn’t have any at all. So all I could do was hear.

Some drills sounded uncomfortably close to me. What was happening? Some sort of surgery, I guess. Maybe this is part of their experiment, making me a chimera as they called it.

Suddenly, pain shot through my right arm. It felt as if it was being hacked off. Then the pain abruptly stopped. I didn’t have an arm anymore. I wanted to yell out in pain. But I couldn’t. It wasn’t just the anaesthetics I had been given that stopped me from screaming in agony, it felt like I couldn’t open my mouth at all.

Was all of this really necessary? Next, I could feel my back being sliced open, and something was inserted in there. It felt cold, yet oddly light. Not uncomfortable at all.

Finally, my eye. I felt something being placed over it and the strangest thing – whatever it was attached itself to my eye.

So much pain. I just wanted to end. I just wanted to sleep. And my wish was granted.

It felt like I was falling in a void of darkness. Strange… it felt as peaceful as it was scary.

And then, I woke up.

The first thing I noticed was something I haven’t felt for some time. No pain. I felt perfectly fine. Well, I felt fine physically but of course I still had many questions. For once, it seemed as if I might get them. There was a man standing there, old yet clearly wise beyond his years. I don’t know how but suddenly I knew so much about him. I could see information.

‘Name: Dr Andonuts’

‘Age: 57’

‘Family: 1 son, Name: Jeff Andonuts’

‘Director of Chimera Laboratory. Currently working on Human Chimera Project.’

So this man is responsible for the project I have heard so much about. The one who is responsible for experimenting on me.

“Well, you’ve finally awoken! I must admit, you had us all worried there!”

This man’s voice… for some reason, it soothes me. It sounds familiar in a way. Like… like the voice of a father. I was furious at him for experimenting on me, murderous intents filled my mind, yet his voice seemed to extinguish that fire within me. I decide to hear what he has to say.

“Dr Andonuts?” I ask.

“Good, it seems like that new eye is working. I had my reservations about it but I suppose…”

My eye? I put my left hand up to my left eye. It doesn’t feel like an eye at all. It feels like… metal?

“Careful! You don’t want to break it!” he says

“Why is my eye like this? How do I know who you are? Why am I here? Who are those pigs?”

“One thing at a time now. Your eye was damaged, so we had to use cybernetics to repair it. The eye has some special features – infrared radiation, a temperature sensor, map data, zooming abilities and the ability to analyse a target and give you information on them from our databanks.”

Wow. That’s a lot of things – and he says it has some special features.

“You said my eye was damaged. How?”

“You were found at the bottom of a cliff… Drago Plateau. You were heavily injured. We kept you in that solution to heal you. Your right arm, your left eye and your back suffered the most. So we had to replace them.”

Looking down, I see my right arm is encased in metal. It moves just like a hand, yet it feels so much stronger. As if I could crush anything with it. I suppose in a way, it’s even better than my old hand.

“Your hand also has a special feature – try pressing that button on top of your wrist.”

He points to this small button - I wouldn’t have recognised it if he didn’t show me. I press it and suddenly feel this small tingling in my arm. My hand begins to transform, the fingers curl into a fist which seem to pull itself back into my metallic arm. Something else sprouts in place of my hand… a arm cannon? What have they done to me?

“What did you do to my hand?” I say, anger seeping into my voice.

“Now don’t be angry, this isn’t permanent. Simply press that button and your hand will be back.”

I follow his advice and he’s right – the arm cannon retracts and my hand comes back. This doesn’t make sense. I’m relieved that I have a hand, thankful to the doctor even that it could be made stronger , despite the artificial nature of it. But why would I need an arm cannon? Why would I need an eye that can analyse a target and give infrared radiation? I voice this to the doctor. For once, he doesn’t immediately have an answer. In fact, he looks just as confused as I am.

“I’m not sure why you needed an arm cannon or such an advanced eye. Now that you mention it, these do seem like odd things to give.”

“You don’t know? How can you not know when you are responsible for this?”

“I was responsible for this, you’re certainly right about that. But I was told to give you those modifications by my... superiors. For what purpose, I don’t know.’

I’m hesitant to believe him. Why wouldn’t his superiors tell him what these modifications are for? Actually, who are his superiors? I wouldn’t imagine he has any, given that he is the director of this laboratory. For now, I suppose I shall have to trust him.

“Are there any other modifications I am not aware?” I ask.

“One more but I think you’ll like this one. Press those two buttons on your shoulders simultaneously.”

I do so and a pair of bat-like wings appear at my sides, unfolding like origami. I turn around expecting to see huge scars in my back, but find none at all. Part of my back seems to protected with a layer of metal – I suppose it was for the injuries I suffered there, which the wings came out of. It’s strange, the wings don’t feel like an accessory, rather like an extension of myself. They don’t just look cool either – they actually work! I can flap them to lift myself and hover, but actually gaining altitude is harder.

“How do I go up with these? Unless…”

I’ve just noticed that like a jetpack, there are two levers I can use, presumably to control thrusters. I try using them and sure enough, I’m actually flying! Controlling it is a bit harder but with some practice I’m getting better.

“I see you’ve found it out! Just be careful not to fly too much – your fuel supply is limited!” Dr Andonuts shouts over the noise.

Hearing that, I decide to stop and land. Pressing the same two buttons simultaneously causes my wings to fold back in. I can’t help but marvel at the Doctor’s work.

“You’ll report to me occasionally for check ups. Just to make sure that certain parts are working as they should and that you haven’t run out of fuel for your wings. Do you have any more questions?”

“A couple. Firstly, why can’t I remember anything?”

“You may have lost your memory from the fall you took. However, we also erased your memories.”

“What? Why? Those are my memories! You’ve no right to take them away!” I yell.

“That is true and I was highly opposed to doing so… but alas my ‘superiors’ forced me to. Whatever their reasoning is, I don’t know. The more I think about it, the more I realise that I actually know very little.” he says darkly.

“You failed.” I retort.

“What?”

“You failed to erase all my memories. I can remember some things. A large green chimera with teeth – your work, I suppose, attacked me once.

“A drago? Oh!”

Dr Andonuts quickly puts his hands to his mouth. I suspect he wasn’t supposed to say that.

“So it’s called a drago? And I was found at Drago Plateau? Coincidence? I don’t think so!”

“I… I really don’t know.”

I sense the doctor is as clueless as I am. I decide to back off a little.

“About some of these parts, will they work in water?”

“We’ve built them to be very durable. They won’t damage or rust in water. Obviously if you open them, then they will be damaged, but apart from that, you should be fine.

“That’s good. But what now? Thanks to you, I don’t know anything. Where I live.”

“Our king has requested that you see him once you were repaired. He was actually the one who gave me all these orders – the arm cannon, the wings, the eye and erasing your memories – all that was him.”

Their king? Why would their king want to see me? Why would he order all of these enhancements to be made and my memory to be erased?

“I suppose I may as well see this king of yours.”

“I shall arrange some transport then.”

Dr Andonuts goes over to a control panel and calls for two soldiers (so there’s an army then), to take me outside on an airship to… New Pork City? Brilliant name.

“They’ll be outside, so just take the elevators to get down to the ground floor. If you get lost, I’ve installed a map into your eye so use that.”

I proceed to leave. But before I open the door, I remember one last question.

“How’s Jeff?”

The expression on the doctor’s expression was one of pure shock. I suppose he wasn’t expecting me to find out that. Yet, there was some sadness mixed in. Had his son died? It must be sad, to outlive your own child. I instantly regretted asking the question. But more than that, I regretted being angry at Dr Andonuts. He was a victim, just like me.

“I’m sorry for asking. And… thank you.”

With that, I left the room, leaving the still stunned doctor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bit of a long one ( darn exposition) but I hope you all like this one as well. Next time, we get to see some pigmasks!  
I’m aware that Claus is a bit OOC but I think I give a good representation of his personality.  
Also, I don’t know if Dr Andonuts has an actual age but I picked 57. Guess why? It seems plausible though.
> 
> As always, please read and review!


	3. When Pigs Fly

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally able to leave the Chimera Laboratory, Claus makes his way to New Pork City to meet the Pig King.

The Chimera Laboratory certainly was a large place from what my map showed. I wonder what other chimeras they make here. Why would they need other kinds of chimeras? I was made into one because of my injuries. But what about the other chimeras. What about that drago? Maybe this king of theirs will give me some answers. Following Dr Andonuts’s advice by taking the elevators quickly gets me to the ground floor and my map easily gets me to the entrance. The first thing I notice is a pig sitting at the desk, like the pigs I saw before I first lost consciousness. Are these pigs chimeras as well?

“Commander! It’s good to see you all right!”

Commander? I’m their commander? How can that be? I don’t work for them! I’m not part of their army! Is that something I’ve forgotten? 

“I’m sorry, I think you have me confused with someone else.” I say politely.

“The hand, the eye and the orange hair - you’re definitely him!” he replies.

I’m very confused but I decide not to pursue further.

“Right, well I was told to come here by Dr Andonuts…”

“To see our king! Yes, we’ve got that sorted!” he says enthusiastically.

I follow him outside and see two more pigs refuelling a metallic pig shaped pod. Both of them also address me as ‘Commander’.

“Right then, make sure you get him safely to New Pork.” the first says.

I get inside the pig shaped pod, finding it to be much larger on the inside than the exterior would suggest. I take a seat and the two pigs join me. The seats are actually comfortable - although I might just think that because it’s been so long since I have sat down. Before long, the metallic pod takes flight.

“Are you chimeras?” I ask.

“No, Commander we’re humans, like you. Well, not exactly but you get the point.” One replies

“Then why do you look like pigs?”

One of them chuckles. “These are just suits. They actually provide some protection for us.”

“Are you soldiers then? Soldiers in an army?”

“Indeed! The finest army in the world – the Pigmask Army!”

Pigmask Army. Well, I can’t say the name isn’t fitting, although I hope their army is better than their name. And I’m their commander…

“Who made me the commander?”

“Our king. Well, technically you aren’t the commander yet, but you will be soon. We’ve been told to call you Commander though. After all, we don’t know what your name is.”

Yeah, because you lot erased my memories. This king of theirs is going to make me commander of an army. Why? What do I have that’s so special? I mean, I suppose not many people could survive a fall like I did. And there was that lightning - dang it , why didn’t I ask Dr Andonuts about that? I’m flattered and disgusted at the same time. Although, I suppose that explains why I got some of these modifications – like the arm cannon.

The journey to New Pork City only takes us 30 minutes. These pods may not look elegant, but I can’t deny that they’re fast. I wonder if Dr Andonuts helped with these. When we land, the first thing I notice is the sheer size of the city. A theatre, a theme park, a giant restaurant – and those are only some of the things I can see.

There are two things that catch my attention in particular though. The first is a large statue of a ...kid? The other is an incredibly large building, which seems to go into the sky. And are those spikes on its sides?

“Ah, I see you’re interested in our most important building, Commander.” says one of the Pigmasks.

“Yes. What is it?” I ask

“That is the Empire Porky Building. It’s where our king lives.”

Empire Porky Building. Frankly, I want to know who came up with this names, because thanks to them, I have a real craving for bacon. And maybe some sausages.

“Is that where I’m going then?”

“Actually no. The king wants you to meet him for lunch, so we’re heading to a restaurant. You must be hungry anyway Commander - it’s been a week since we found you at Drago Plateau!”

A week? I was out for that long? Now that I think about it, although I want food, I also don’t feel hungry at all. Nevertheless, I wouldn’t want to disappoint their king and I need him because he can answer my questions.

I follow the Pigmasks through New Pork City and it seems as if the restaurant we’re going to is near the Empire Porky Building, just to the left of the theme park. I see some of the citizens look at me – some are scared, some salute me (I assume these are off duty Pigmasks) and others just try to ignore me. We reach the restaurant which as it happens is named Beauty and Tasty – lacking the pig theme for once. How strange.

“Well, here we are Commander.”

“Thank you. Is the king inside here then?”

“Indeed. Believe or not, he’s about your age!”

My age? But I’m only… actually I don’t know how old I am. I guess I’m about 12 or so though. I’m only 12 years old and I’m going to lead an army? But their king is a child? Strangely, hearing their king is only a child makes me feel somewhat more comfortable about the prospect of being the Commander. Still though...

“Your king is my age? How can that be?”

“He’s just that good of a ruler. See the statue over there? That’s our monument of him!”

The Pigmasks point to a statue – the statue of a child, the one I was interested in when I first entered the city. Closer to it, I can properly see it in detail. The child depicted seems chubby, with a crown on his head, a comic book in his left hand and a slingshot in his right hand. I would mock it, but for some reason, it actually scares me. It feels hostile in some way, despite the goofy nature of it. To become king at such an age... he’s certainly no ordinary child. Just like me...

“What’s your king like?”

“You may be surprised at what he looks like. He’s… changed a lot from what the statue depicts. His kindness is still intact though. Well then, this is where we part.”

Surprised at what he looks like? I’m not sure what to make of that. Is he actually a man? A women? A chimera? I suppose I’ll find out. But actually, there is one more thing…

“Thank you. But what is the king’s name?” I ask.

“Master Porky.”

The two salute me and leave. Still wondering what to make of all of this, I enter the restaurant, readying myself. This is it. it’s time for me to get the answers to all my questions. It’s time for me to sort things out once and for all. Time to meet the king of the pigs.

Porky.

Master Porky.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A short one this time - I wanted to save the meeting with Porky for the next chapter and focus more on Claus’s initial impressions on Porky. Next time, the meeting with the Pig King!


	4. His Highness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claus finally gets to meet His Highness, Porky. He finds answers to his questions - but will he be happy with what he finds out?

There are three things which strike me as odd when I enter.

The first is the pink décor in this restaurant. Pink tables, pink walls and pink clothes. It’s by no means ugly, merely… jarring. The second are the 7 waitresses. They’re all identical . A chubby women with blonde hair. I must say, if they’re all related, genetics really screwed them over. They wear a (say it with me) pink apron and have an obscene amount of lipstick.

Huh. Since when did I become such an expert on fashion? Maybe I was a kid model before I lost my memories. If I had identical siblings like these waitresses, it would mean we could cut down on the number of clothes we each have to wear for fashion shows. Doesn’t seem very interesting though. It be cool if we were all performers though. But multiple identical siblings would be hard to handle. Maybe it would be best to have one. A twin to do a double act with. We could perform all sorts of mischief – I bet we’d give our parents a hard time!

A mother, a father and a brother… people to love and be loved by…

**But all that, if it ever existed, is all in the past.**

Shaking the melancholy thoughts out, I focus on the third thing that strikes me as odd. Apart from the waitresses, there’s only one person here. I suppose it’s the king, who asked the restaurant to be cleared out for this meeting.

As I get closer, I realise exactly what the Pigmasks meant when they that the king has changed a lot from what the statue depicts. The statue showed a child.

This was not a child.

You could take every single known definition of ‘child’ or ‘kid’ or any synonyms of these two words and none of them – none of them, would be appropriate for this… thing. Put it this way, I remember wondering whether Porky was actually A: a man, B: a women or C: a chimera.

I was not expecting option C to be closest.

What stood before me was a being with the shape and appearance of the boy depicted by the statue but he looked incredibly old. He looked ghostly white – his hair, his body, even his clothes, looked as if they would fade away at any moment. I can’t say I’d be sad if he did. This abomination was inside of a weird capsule – if he was as old as he looks, I suppose it was some sort of life support.

Then, with an ominous hissing, he got out of the capsule.

**Oh no. **

He slowly lumbered towards me, with his hands out. Like a zombie.

**I’m going to die. Die at the hands of this child zombie thing in a pink restaurant manned by 7 waitresses who all look the same.**

He lumbers even closer until he’s right up to my face. I… I… I can’t move. My feet refuse to. He’s so close I could smell him. Only I can’t. His scent…I’ll always remember it because…

Because he doesn’t have one.

He smells of nothing. It’s so strange. I could smell food before and now, I smell nothing. Nothing at all. For a minute, I wonder if I’ve died and lost my sense of smell. But I can still see him. He’s so close that our noses are touching. He leans in and…

“Boo.”

If backwards long jumping was a sport, I think I’d do rather well in it. I leap what feels like 3 feet backward in surprise. And then, the oddest thing…

“Ha. Hahahaha. Heeheehee!”

He breaks down laughing right then and there. I’m still in shock. He keeps laughing for quite some time. Eventually, he stops laughing and transitions into... coughing? A rather violent coughing fit at that. I almost feel sorry for him. Finally though, he stops and takes a seat at a table, regaining his composure. By then, I’ve regained mine.

“I’m sorry. Well I’m not, the look on your face was priceless!” chuckles Porky. “I hope we can still be friends.”

Friends? Friends!? You scare the bejesus out me and you expect me to your friend? The fight or flight response is something that I find interesting because of what people will do. I can remember that when I encountered that drago, I chose to fight. Here would have been a great opportunity to choose flight. But my dumb legs decided to choose option 3: freeze.

“Are you just gonna stand there?”

My legs finally realise , ‘oh wait we’re the thing that lets the body move’, but instead of doing the smart thing and moving backwards, they decide to move forwards and take a seat. I want to just run away and never look back. I want to just use my wings and fly away from New Pork City. Find my home, find my family. But it’s like I’m not in control of my body anymore. Regardless, I want answers and this is who I’m going to get them from.

“You’re a slow one, aren’t you?”

“Porky. I’m sorry, I mean Your Majesty. Nononono wait, Master Porky.” I stammer out.

“Hahaha! When we’re alone, just Porky is fine. Though it’s nice to see that someone has manners.”

I suppose he’s rather causal. Fitting considering he’s a child.

“I have so many questions.”

“And I’m here to answer them. But first things first: what would you like to eat?”

What? What do I want to eat? Come to think of it, nothing. I’ve lost my appetite now. Gee, I wonder why...

“I’m not hungry.”

“Ah, well it’s a good thing I’m not asking you to eat. I’m ordering you!” he says gleefully.

“I’m not sure what to get.”

“Anything’s good here! This place is called ‘Beauty and Tasty’ after all! You’ve seen the beauty in our wonderful waitresses, now it’s time for the taste!” Porky says while smacking his lips together.

I’ll be honest – I have to try really hard not to laugh at that wonderful waitresses comment.

“Tell you what – we’re both kids. And what’s the most kid food in the world? Burgers!”

He shouts to one of the waitresses “Hey, get me and my friend here a King burger each and some fries!”

The waitresses immediately all dart off to prepare the meal – accompanied with a “Of course, Master Porky.” Even though their voices sound ugly. Still, burgers do sound nice.

It’s only 5 minutes before they return. They come in with burgers on a plate adorned with fries. The burgers are mouthwatering – large with beef, lettuce, tomato, bacon, cheese and topped off with a crown on top. The fries are golden brown and cooked to perfection. I take a bite and it’s as good as it looks. Porky digs in to his food as well. Before long, the two of us have finished our food. All my energy seems to have recovered as well.

“Ahhhhh! Nothing like a good burger to fix you up!”

For once, I’m inclined to agree with him.

“So then. You’ve got questions and I’ve got answers.”

“Who am I?”

“Awww. I was hoping you’d ask an easy one first.” He pouts.

“What’d be the fun in that?”

“I suppose you’re right. Get ready because it’s a long tale. I don’t know your name, so don’t bother asking.”

“Yeah, because you erased my memories!”

“I had a reason to!”

“What reason could you have for taking away all my happy memories!” I counter.

Porky looks at me carefully and says slowly “You made an assumption there. You assumed that your memories are happy.”

What? I assumed my memories are happy? So does that mean…

“I erased your memories to free you. I erased them to save you. From the things I was told about you, I saw a boy who had been abused and mistreated by the people who he thought cared about him. I wanted to give you the ability to make your life better and in order to do so, parts of you had to be changed.”

Mistreated? He erased my memories to… to help me?

“Explain. What do you mean?”

“Your memories are horrifying. Some of those idiotic people in that village told me so many horrible things about you. Called you a cursed child. A freak. When you were healed and enhanced at the Chimera Laboratory, I knew I couldn’t send you back. I’d be a horrible king if I did so.”

He sounds genuinely sad. These villagers called me cursed, a freak. But why?

“Why am I a freak?”

“You’re not. They just want you to think that.”

“Still, they must have had some reason to.”

“It’s because you have powers.”

Powers? Like that thunder thing I did?

“The easiest way to explain it all to you would be to tell you. But you may not be happy with what you hear.”

As much I don’t want to hear it, I have to. I must.

“I want to know.”

“Then get ready.” Porky takes a deep breath.

“You grew up in a place called Tazmily. A simple town, very different from New Pork. While we are advanced, the people of Tazmily are rather stubborn and refuse to accept technology. I sent ambassadors from New Pork to try and spread our technology but they refused it. That hurt, but the worst part was what they did.”

“What did they do?”

“They hurt us. They came and beat up several of my soldiers, even though we came in peace. I’m not pleased with it, but one of my generals was forced to order the soldiers to defend themselves. Thankfully, we didn’t kill or seriously hurt any of the villagers. I wish I could say the same for us.”

“Some of the soldiers died?”

“No, but several had many injuries. Some will have to have surgery done like you had, although not to the same extent as you. My general, Fassad, says about 50% of the soldiers he took with him were injured by the villagers. Fassad himself, thankfully wasn’t too badly injured but he was hurt on the inside. He wanted to be friends with the villagers and work in harmony with them. As did I. But for all our efforts, we got paid in suffering.”

“Those villagers are really that cruel?”

“Yep. In fact, one of them, a boy, attacked some of my soldiers with a Drago!”

Now I’m really interested. I remember a Drago myself. But wait, a boy attacked some villagers with a Drago? No! Was that me?

“Here, I’ll show you.”

Porky pushes a button on his capsule and a screen pops out of the top. A video starts playing.

“Our soldiers had to retreat. Some decided to go through the forest. A big mistake.”

The video shows a monkey and a girl. They beat up the Pigmasks around them with no mercy. The girl even attacks them with fire, ice and… lightning. I’m horrified at the massacre.

“Please stop!” shouts one of them in vain.

This particular soldier isn’t wearing the usual Pigmask attire. I suppose he must be Fassad.

The girl and the monkey don’t stop. I can’t look. But then I hear a roar. A familiar one. A Drago. In comes a Drago, with a boy on top of it. The boy… he looks like me. Only he has blonde hair. Is he…?

Before I can continue that thought, I hear some screams. The Drago is attacking the Pigmasks. Some are chomped, others are flung into the air. The girl and the monkey are cheering. Laughing. Laughing at the suffering of these innocents. I… I can’t take this! Let it end!

“Stop it! Stop it now!” I scream, not at Porky but the people in the video.

Porky decides to turn the video off though. We sit there in silence. How can a child do something so cruel? That boy… he may look innocent on the outside, but inside lies a monster.

“When… when did this all happen?”

“5 days ago.”

5 days. Some of those Pigmasks are still recovering then. It was soon after I was found then. So recent…

“Where do I fit into all of this?”

“We found you a week ago. Fassad asked the villagers if they knew about a boy with orange hair. They said they did. But what they said next… they asked if you had died. Fassad told them that you might be dead. They cheered. They celebrated. The only thing that they were sad about, was that you weren’t certainly dead.”

“They were happy? Do they not care about their own people?”

“Only those that conform to their standards. You were different – and to them different is bad.”

“How am I different?”

“What happened when you fought the Drago and when you were in that capsule at Chimera Laboratory?”

What happened? I was angry and scared in both cases. But what else? Lightning. In both cases, I used some sort of lightning.

“I used lightning.”

“Exactly. There are these people called psychics. They can do stuff with their minds. They can read minds, teleport, heal…”

“And use the elements? I’m a psychic then?

“Yep! And with some training, I bet you’ll be a pretty good one at that!”

“That girl in the video… is she a psychic as well?”

“You’re a quick one. She is. Only certain people are psychics though – they’re chosen ones, if you know what I mean. To the villagers though, you’re freaks.”

“But these powers, aren’t they special? Why would we be freaks?”

“You destroyed a room in Chimera Laboratory with those powers. You can understand why someone would be scared. It’s hard to control these powers at first. It doesn’t help that the first time you used your powers resulted in a… less than desirable situation.”

“I don’t understand.”

Porky shows me a different video, an aerial shot of a forest near Tazmily. On fire. Burning away madly. The video transitions to what the forest was like afterwards. Decimated by the fire. Trees have fallen and everything is partially black.

“What happened here?”

“You. The first time you used your thunder powers you accidentally…”

Porky doesn’t finish the sentence but I can figure out the rest. I set this forest on fire? And the villagers called me a freak because of it. I guess I can understand but, it was an accident!

“The villagers were angry at you and scared. You may be responsible but they weren’t willing to forgive you or even give you any sort of chance. Your mother and father, along with the rest of the villagers decided that it was best if you left Tazmily. So when you were asleep, they abandoned you. On a mountain.”

Drago Plateau. How could my own mother and father agree to this? I though family was supposed to love you! But I suppose, this proves they never loved me at all.

“So that’s when I encountered that Drago.”

“And sadly, it attacked you, brutally injured you and threw you of the cliff.”

“But why was it a chimera? It had a strange eye and metal armour.”

For a second, I thought I saw Porky surprised. It must have just been his appearance.

“The villagers are brutal. They kill animals for materials. Dragos in particular for their fangs. You see, a Drago fang is strong enough to pierce through anything. They use them as weapons. A group of soldiers found an injured Drago and we decided to make it a chimera so it could live. It was angry at the villagers for what it did. When it saw you…”

“It assumed I was a villager as well and attacked me.”

I wasn’t angry at the Drago at all then. I was angry of the situation I was in. Abandoned.

“That’s one of the reason I wanted to save you. Because I felt responsible for what had happened to you.”

“You’re not. You saved my life and that Drago’s. It was mere misfortune that we happened to meet. You are not to blame. Those villagers are. They shunned me without giving me a chance at all. They never cared about me. They are ignorant and refuse to see the error of their ways.”

“Thank you. I’m just sorry you had to hear all of this. Live through it again. I’m not sure if it was the right choice. You were angry at me before but at least you were happier…”

“It was the right choice and I thank you for telling me. I may be less happy but I’ve only myself to blame for asking. At least now, I’m wiser. But why did you save me? I’m grateful, but to you , surely I must have been another villager. Wouldn’t you have left me to die?”

“I hope you’ll forgive me but my reasons for saving you weren’t completely selfless. I hoped that if I saved you, I could show the villagers what technology could do. What benefits it could have. You were recovering while Fassad went as an ambassador. When he told me that the villagers refused to accept technology, you were my secret ‘weapon’. With you, we could show them that technology can save lives.”

“Of course I forgive you. But I’m guessing you didn’t follow through with that plan.”

“When Fassad told me how the villagers reacted to you disappearing, I realised that these people would never learn. They were a group of cold hearted people. The only good thing was that they weren’t as advanced. The last thing I would want to do is give them that advantage by giving them a way of extending their cold hearted lives.”

I don’t know what to say. I’ve learned so much in the past hour. I wanted answers and I got them. But did I need them? I did. But what now?

“I can’t go back! Please don’t make me!” I beg to Porky.

“Are you crazy? I can’t send you back to those people! You’re a citizen of New Pork now!”

I’m so happy. I can stay here. Here, where people are kind to me. Here, where there’s so much to do. Here, where I’m happy. Where I have… a friend.

“Thank you. I don’t what to say to your generosity.”

“Then don’t say anything. Come on, if you’re gonna live here, you better see the place! I’ll give you the personal tour!”

Porky leaves the table and I follow him. As I do so, I realise I’m as happy as can be. Because I’m loved here. I walk out of the restaurant with Porky.

I walk with… with my friend.

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, this chapter is the longest one yet. Got to say, I had fun thinking about all the ways I could have Porky manipulate Claus. Next time, some bonding between Claus and Porky!


	5. Isn’t This Such A Utopia?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claus and Porky decide to explore the utopia of New Pork City - and the past of Porky, as well as four special children...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Small thing: try listening to this chapter’s namesake while reading this.

The streets of New Pork City seemed so much more friendly now. Before , I looked at it with fear. Now, I look at it with admiration. The streets are so shiny and clean, with so many advanced buildings. I’ll admit - I’ve been somewhat apprehensive towards technology beforehand. Scared that it could run rampant and take over, decimate a place and rip nature apart. But Porky has shown me that technology can be used to preserve nature, as he did with both myself and that Drago. Technology has been used to enhance buildings, protecting those within it. Buildings stronger than the ones at Tazmily. Those buildings look so flimsy, a mere lightning bolt from me could take them down to rubble.

And they’d deserve it.

Although now I must wonder, nature does seem a bit lacking here. Surely this place must have been luscious before? And now it’s all gone…

“Soooooo? What do you want to do first?” shouts the overly excited king.

“What to do first? I’m not sure?”

“Ah, well how about the grand tour? It’ll be great!”

“All right.”

“Well, first off is the place where any kid must go to. The arcade!”

Porky and I walk off – or rather he skips out in front and I hesitantly follow. I may trust him more than I did before, but he still… not right? It’s hard to describe, but I always feel uneasy around him. Even though he’s a good guy. I suppose it’s his appearance more than anything else. Still, he has the youth of a child in his mind. It’s strange. Still, I suppose with time, I’ll get more comfortable around him. At least I hope.

The arcade’s a bit of a walk but I don’t mind. In fact, it’s the strangest thing, I don’t feel tired at all. I suppose it’s the modifications. Or maybe it’s just because I’m a kid and have lots of energy. Or both.

Either way, the whole being a kid and having lots of energy doesn’t seem to apply to Porky – frequently he’ll stop and just pant or cough. He doesn’t look like the most athletic kid in the world – not by a long shot, but even still, his lack of stamina is astounding. After the seventh time (I decide to count for fun), I decide to ask him.

“Why are you so...” I try and think of a polite way of saying it.

“So slow? It’s okay, I know you were thinking it.” Porky doesn’t look as offended as I thought he’d be. Still, I can see some sorrow and I immediately regret what little I said. “Look at me. Ghostly white. Need a capsule to help me. And I’m just a kid. You’ve gone through some bad things. I have too. And just like you, my life has been changed.”

What happened to him? Sure, I’ve gone through some horrible things, but losing an arm and an eye, and having to undergo this surgery pales in comparison to what he must have.

“What happened? Why are you…”

“There’s a time and place. And this is neither. Please, don’t think about it.”

I continue to follow him. Now I’m just angry at myself. You idiot! You brought back so many unpleasant memories! And now, just look at him! Porky keeps going, but he’s just sliding his feet, head down. We continue to walk in silence. Thankfully, we reach the arcade soon and go in.

The first thing I notice, is all the noise. All sorts of zaps, cars and chatter fills the air. There’s so many games here. And if I’m not mistaken, Porky seems a little brighter.

“Lots of games here! But my favourite is this one right here!”

He points to a small booth with 2 controllers and a screen. We take a seat here. I take a controller and start pressing buttons, only to see that the screen doesn’t change at all.

“Why isn’t it working?”

Porky rolls over in laughter for a minute before answering. “You have to pay money to play! Look up there.” he says while pointing at the screen.

Indeed, the screen says ‘Please enter 30 DP for 1 player, 50 DP for two.’ DP? What is that? Actually, Porky used a word called ‘money’. Is DP ‘money’? I’m wondering whether this is just my memory loss, and while it very well could be, I simply can’t think of anything.

It’s weird – I can remember concepts. Well, I couldn’t remember quite what swimming was when I first awoke but I can now. I know what buildings, food, cities, instruments and all the rest are. But I can’t remember specific things like people. Personal things. Maybe Porky only erased those memories, because he knew those would hurt the most?

But even if that were the case, money should fit into the first category of memories – something which is a concept, yet I have no clue what it is or what it means. So is it that I’ve simply never heard of it? But money is evidently an important thing in New Pork, if all these arcade machines require it. Sensing I’m about to add another foolish question to the list, I ask Porky what money is. For once, he doesn’t laugh.

“You’re from Tazmily so I suppose it makes sense you don’t know. The people of Tazmily operate under the barbaric logic of take what you need no matter the cost. Here, at New Pork, we have people that provide all sorts of services without disrupting nature. But they need to repaid somehow right? So we have money. Basically, someone does something for you, and you give them money. They can use that money to have other people do stuff for them. For example, you want an orange, so you give someone money and they give you one. But of course, some things are harder than others. A pineapple is harder to grow and find than an orange so you’ll have to pay more money for a pineapple.”

“So the more money you have, the better?”

“There you go! You really are a quick learner!”

“So what is DP?”

“DP is short for Dragon Power. It’s how we quantify money. If you want an orange, you pay 10 DP. If you want a pineapple, you pay 50 DP. This is what money looks like.”

Porky takes out a bunch of things from his pocket. Some metal pieces and slips of paper.

“These are coins. These are notes.” he says, pointing to the metal and paper respectively. “The coins are worth 1 DP. The notes can vary, but you can tell by looking at the number on them.”

Some of the notes have a 5 on them, others have a 10 or a 20, and I think I see one with a 50.

“So these are worth 5 DP.” I say pointing to a 5 note.

“Good! Now then, put in the right amount of money for 1 player. I’ll let you have a go on your own first – it wouldn’t be fun to beat you straight away!”

I take a 20 and a 10, placing them in a slot on the machine. The machine eats it and the screen changes. ‘Select your character.’ it reads. There’s 6 characters to choose from. First is a chubby boy, not to the same extent as Porky, but still rounder the most, with a blue and yellow striped shirt and a red baseball cap. He’s holding a peace sign. The next up is a girl, the only girl on the list, with a pink dress and blonde hair, a ribbon tied into it. After is a boy, dressed with a green uniform and tie. He looks smart with those glasses. Actually, he looks like a younger version of Doctor Andonuts. Could it be?

Next is another boy, with a white karate uniform and a black belt. He’s almost bald, save for a few strands. He’s the tallest character and seems older than everyone else. Next up is another chubby boy, with blue shorts and a black shirt with a white M on it. His blonde hair almost covers his eyes. He looks similar to Porky. Last up is another chubby kid with blue overalls who also has blonde hair, although it isn’t as long as the previous character’s.

These two seem related. Is one of them Porky and the other a relative? A brother perhaps? Remembering the statue, I take a good look at them both and I think the second is Porky? He looks normal here. How did he change so much? Does his family know? I decide these are questions for later and pick the boy with the red baseball cap, since he’s the first one in the list and the one my cursor defaults too.

“Good choice! He’s my second favourite character. After me of course!”

So that boy was him?

Next, I get to choose a stage. There’s all sorts of places with names I don’t recognise – Onett, Twoson, Threed, Fourside, Deep Darkness, Scaraba, Daleem, Summers, Winters, and a strange white cave that’s just called ‘???’. Once again, I decide to go to go with the default – Onett.

The screen changes to a city, with the boy I chose in it, wielding a baseball bat. The city seems to be a strange hybrid between Tazmily and New Pork. Not as advanced as New Pork but more advanced than Tazmily. I explore the place and find a number of buildings – a town hall, a burger joint, a bakery and a hospital. Like in New Pork, there’s an arcade. But as soon as I approach, these weird people approach me. A purple man with a hula hoop, a green guy on a pogo stick and a grey guy on a skateboard.

“It’s the Sharks! Quick, whack them with your bat!”

I do what any good person does- start randomly pressing buttons. My character starts all sorts of things – swinging his bat, jumping, shooting fire, thunder, and finally, a flash engulfs part of the screen, causing some of them to start crying, other to start attacking each other and some just lay on the ground.

“Well, I suppose that works as well. Maybe a lesson in how to control the characters is in order. You press the A button for your normal attacks and the B button for your psychic powers. But the direction you hold can change your powers. Like, if you press B on its own, you’ll do that flash attack but if you hold left and B, you’ll use fire.”

A strange control scheme to say the least, but I suppose I can get used to it. I do a bit more walking and see another group of foes – Sharks according to Porky. I thought sharks live in the water. I run up to one and bash him with my bat. A group of three comes from the left. Following Porky’s advice, I shoot fire at them, sending them into the sky. There’s some on the platform above me. I try holding upwards and using my psychic powers, the boy shoots… lightning. PK Thunder? I can manipulate the lightning at them but I wonder what would happen if I had the lightning hit myself. I go skyrocketing into the air, hitting one of them.

“That’s it! You’re a natural!”

I play some more but eventually I take mortal damage and fall. Still, it was fun while it lasted.

“All right then. Let’s see how you do against me!”

Porky enters a 50 DP note into the machine and picks up his controller. I decide to go for the same character again and Porky naturally picks himself. Porky decides to pick the white cave. The two of us emerge. The strangest thing is that Porky is in a machine of sorts. It’s not like the bed machine I saw either – rather it looks like a spider of sorts. The two of us start to fight, but I realise just how good Porky is. He easily stomps on me – both figuratively and literally. My fire attacks barely do anything. Glass is a terrible conductor of electricity so PK Thunder won’t work. Porky sprays some weird gas at me and now my controls are inverted. Porky decimates me. All with a smile on his face.

“Haha! I win!”

Still, at least he’s happy. We leave the arcade soon after.

“Okay, so next up is the theatre. There’s one movie in particular I’d like you to see.”

The theatre’s only a short walk from here. When we get there, Porky decides to get 2 tickets for a movie called ‘Earthbound’, as well as some popcorn. We take a seat and the first thing I notice are the four people on the title screen. They’re exactly the same as the ones on that game. The boy with the baseball cap, the girl with the pink dress, the young Dr Andonuts and the karate kid. The only two who are missing are Porky and the person who looks like his brother.

The movie starts and while it’s certainly entertaining, for some reason, I can’t make sense of most of it. Apparently, these boys and this girl are on a quest to defeat the evil known as Giygas. Or is it Giegue? I swear, the actors say it both ways throughout the movie.

Lots of strange things happen – including, but not limited to, giant ants and sentient piles of barf attacking the kids, a group of strange, yet adorable, creatures known as the Mr Saturns (which like the word ‘Boing’), a police force that assaults the boy in the cap (for trespassing), a cult that really like the colour blue, a band that somehow gets conned into a rubbish deal, and has to be saved by kids, twice, a group of moles that all think they’re the third strongest, a piece of magic cake that the heroes really shouldn’t have eaten, the nightmare that is Moonside, Mu, a kraken and a badge that can somehow reflect lightning back at the user.

All the locations on that arcade game appear in this movie as well. I suppose this movie must be really popular if it has its own arcade game based of it. But here’s the thing – I haven’t seen Porky once this movie, or his brother (an assumption, albeit a somewhat justified one), yet both appear in the arcade game. If the arcade game is based off the movie, why are neither of them in it?

There are some exciting parts as well – I remember the boy in the cap smashing a spout in the stomach. The Dr Andonuts lookalike breaking into a lab and steals a flying device, to help reach his friends. Seeing the girl defeat a mole by bashing its head in with a frying pan is also one of the more interesting parts, if a little humorous given the weapon she’s chosen. And the karate boy suplexing a taxi, just because he can, was certainly quite the show of power. The kids don’t have an easy road to stopping evil, and many foes block their path. Which of course gives them a chance to show off their powers.

You’d think the strangest thing would be the psychic powers these children but I suppose after all I’ve seen, it comes as very normal. Still, the movie serves as a nice guide to all the different psychic powers and I get to learn the names. Some of these are really powerful as well - the baseball boy… actually, I should probably stop calling him that. What was his name… Ness? Right, Ness has PK Flash which can confuse people, cause them to cry or just faint and this unique attack called PK Rockin which just decimates everything. It is, quite literally, mind blowing. I thought shooting 1 thunderbolt was cool, but this girl Paula can shoot up to 3 thunderbolts, as well as being able to use PK Fire and PK Freeze. The karate prince, Poo… how many times did the actors have to redo lines because they couldn’t keep straight faces while saying his name? Seriously, did his parents hate him?

Then again, mine did leave me to die so…

Poo can use this PSI called PK Starstorm. The name tells me everything I need to know. What the PSI actually looks like is just a bonus. I’ll admit, seeing these psychic powers is easily the best part. Someday, I want to be able to do all that as well. The only person who can’t use PSI is the Dr Andonuts lookalike, Jeff. Jeff? Wasn’t that the name of Dr Andonuts’ sun? Is this coincidence? No, it must be, Dr Andonuts hasn’t appeared at all in the movie, and surely he would if they were related.

Porky’s expression is by far the strangest thing. He looks enraptured with the movie, as if he’s never seen it before and yet he looks like he’s seen the movie numerous times. I wonder why Porky wanted to show me this in particular.

Right now, Ness is at another ‘sanctuary’ – according to the movie, it’s a place where Ness will gain the power to defeat the ultimate evil because this child is ‘the chosen one’. A tad cliché, although I suppose having kids fill the role puts an interesting spin on it. And he gets to complete a song with it.

The boy goes to a place called Magicant - another thing to add to the list of strange things, in order to conquers the evil within himself – another overused cliché. How about a movie where someone has to overcome the good in themselves? I mean, they’d be the villain but… actually, that wouldn’t work at all.

The boy learns advanced teleportation (another cool PSI ability) and they go to a cave where Giygas supposedly is. They reach him and… it’s something that needs to be seen to be believed. It’s a long and hard battle, but eventually they win.

Which was a mistake. Everything starts to collapse. The four try and make it out… but they fail.

They die.

And that’s where the movie ends.

“So then, how did you find the movie?”

“It was… interesting.”

Yes, interesting seems like a very good way of putting it. The movie itself was by no means a masterpiece, nor was it a complete failure. There are some inconsistencies – Jeff steals a flying device, but acts incredibly scared throughout the rest of the movie. Why would someone who can steal with no fear be scared of a Mr Saturn? The movie leaves so many questions unanswered. Why did the cave start to collapse? What is Giygas?

Many humorous things happened, but with a level of oddity that can’t be described. For a movie called ‘Earthbound’, it isn’t very down to Earth. And the fate of the children was incredibly sad.

I suppose an accurate summation would be strange, funny and heartrending.

“An interesting answer. So to answer your questions…”

“Are you a psychic?!” I ask. How else would he know that?

“I wish. But no. I had you watch that movie as a lesson. A lesson to not assume. It seemed like Ness and his friends were the good guys and Giygas was the bad guy.”

“Is this movie real?”

“No. But it is based of some actual things that happened. You see, in the movie, Giygas was actually the protector of this planet, and the bee lied. By killing Giygas, the planet was weakened. Severely so. And the four who killed him were the first victims.”

So Giygas was the good guy? I suppose it makes sense – like how I once thought that the Pigmask Army were the bad guys as well.

“What about this movie is real?”

“Ness, Paula, Jeff and Poo...” Porky takes a second. “They are all real people. They are also dead.”

“How did they die?”

“Age. They grew old and died.”

“And Giygas?”

“Doesn’t exist.” I think I hear Porky mutter “anymore” but I could be mistaken. “But they were still the bad guys.”

“How?

“Bullies. I grew up with them.”

“Did they bully you then?”

“Everyone. But me in particular. I was chubby and weak. I just wanted to be their friend. But everyday, they would insult me. Call me a pig. Call me Porky. Deny their friendship. Use their bad powers. They were all really bad. But I always felt sorry for Ness. He was actually a good kid. We were actually friends once. Then he met the others. He became bad like them. But I always thought he could be good again. I was wrong. And I learned the hard way.”

Now I’m scared. I was feeling empathetic for Porky, since I had went through the same kinds of betrayal but I can tell he’s leading to something big. Then…

“Have you ever wondered why I look like this?”

Of course I have. But I didn’t think I’d be getting an answer.

“They did this to me. Psychic powers look cool. But they are capable of doing so much damage. You know this better than anyone else. The fire scorching my body. The stars raining down on me. And Ness with his devastating powers.”

They… they look so innocent, they’re only kids! But so was Porky.

_‘I had you watch that movie as a lesson. A lesson not to assume.’_

Porky’s words echo through my mind. I realise, there’s more meaning to them than I originally thought.

“Over and over. I couldn’t get help. We didn’t have money for hospital. Ness’s family ‘borrowed’ a few hundred thousand pounds from us. We never saw it again. My body was never the same.”

“How are you still alive?”

I can understand how Porky became like this. But how is he still alive? PSI is incredibly powerful and continuous use of it would kill a child.

I had a little help from Dr Andonuts. He had something called the Instant Revitalising Device. Supposedly, it can heal any wound and fully refreshed you, as if you’ve had a good night’s sleep. As it turns out, this was wrong. My body had suffered so much, that not even the Instant Revitalising Device could fully heal me. I had to have surgery done to restore my face and body.

How serious were those injuries then? How powerful were those children? Am I just as powerful?

“Like you, I needed support – which Dr Andonuts provided with my bed mecha. I need to be in it almost all the time. Being outside of it, even for an hour or two like now, takes a toll on my body. But the doctor’s work was too good. The machine kept me alive for a long time. Longer than any of my family. Longer than Ness and his friends. They all died while I lived on. I dare say, I’m immortal, so long as I use that mecha.

Immortal? Nothing can live forever. Yet, despite Porky’s childish appearance, he bears the marks of someone who is as old as time itself.

“Mind you, I’ve been trying to think of something more durable. Something that’s absolutely safe. I’ve lived for so long that I can’t remember my age. I can’t even remember my own name. But I never forgot Ness or any of those others. It’s strange. Even though I forgot my own name, I remember clearly what they used to call me. Porky. Over and over.”

So he doesn’t know his own name either. Just like me…

“Dr Andonuts can’t be that old though. Unless he’s not a…”

“He’s human. Technology advances rather quickly. Time travel.” He adds seeing my confusion. “I knew that in order to make the utopia you see before you, I would need help. Dr Andonuts was willing once I explained the situation to his younger self. The promise of technology beyond his wildest dreams certainly helped in motivating.”

“What about his family?”

“He only ever had a son – a son who was partly responsible for my condition. Jeff. He could not love such a person. There was nothing left for him in his time. So I gave him the opportunity to help in a different one.”

“And so with his help, you built this. You built New Pork City.”

“It took a great deal of work. Two people alone can’t make a city. We recruited others – Fassad, I remember was one of the first.But we eventually finished. It’s a place of prosperity. But I decided that the past must be remembered as well. Retelling my story to the average person would induce many nightmares. And I don’t want people to pity my either. So I made a few tweaks and created Giygas. But the core message remains the same. No one is what they seem. Behind the kindest face may lie a monster.”

The people of Tazmily… simple as they look, a monster lies underneath. Ness, Paula, Jeff and Poo… simple children, with hearts more terrifying than Giygas. But the opposite applies as well. Porky… ghostly as he may look, he’s a broken child, made to suffer more than anyone should. Denied a childhood, friends, family and his own identity. His own name.

We’re not so different. Not so different at all. We’ve both lost things. The same things. Yet, the two of us still managed to make something of our lives. No… that’s only partially true. Porky was able to make something of his life. I have not. Not yet. But I will. I owe it to him. To Porky, I owe the life he has given me and the life he has saved me from.

“Porky. I can’t pretend to know the same pain you felt. Because your pain runs deeper than mine and it is a pain which can’t be described. I want to help you. I will help you in whatever way you deem best.

“Why? Many have wanted to join me. Some for money. Others for power. What motivates you?”

“Because you are… a friend. And friends help each other.”

A piggish snort opens the gate to tears.

I embrace Porky. For that moment, everything was fine. The words he spoke will forever be my guide.

‘_No one is what they seem. Behind the kindest face may lie a monster.’_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It’s been a while. Sorry about the delay - being ill coupled with some writer’s block made it hard to write this one. Even then, I’m still not completely happy as to how this chapter turned out - seemed like it was too much exposition, which I had hoped to cover in the last chapter. 
> 
> Some more ‘exposition’ - for those wondering, I personally believe this is how Porky gained his immortality and his name change (save for the fact that he forces Dr Andonuts to work for him, and the fact that he probably adopted Porky as a form of irony). 
> 
> Him blaming Ness and co for his state isn’t a complete lie either - while his excess time travelling could have caused it, they did fight him at the end of Earthbound (and personally I always used my most powerful PSI on Pokey as revenge, since it’s useless on Giygas).
> 
> Next time, Claus begins his training in the Pigmask Army.


	6. Strong One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claus begins his training in the Pigmask Army - learning an important lesson in strength and how to control his psychic powers.

One week ago, I remember promising Porky that I would help in whatever way he saw fit. As it turns out, he had already prepared me for my new role with the enhancements he had given me. I would enlist in the Pigmask Army and be their commander. A role I once would have rejected, but now, I can see no role that I’m better suited for.

_“But while I believe you have the potential to be Commander, *cough*, you lack the skill. My soldiers need a leader that is strong – and you will be that person, in time. The grind will not be easy, but the strength you gain will be worth it.*cough*”_

Even now, I still find myself asking the same question: Why would I need training? With these enhancements and my psychic powers, surely I’m more powerful than any of the Pigmasks here. Nevertheless, if Porky says I need training, I suppose I should follow.

So I’m on one of those flying metallic pig pods, going to the training facility, which seems to be about halfway between New Pork City and the Chimera Laboratory. I hope I’ll get some time off. If so, I’d like to test my wings out and visit Dr Andonuts.

“All right Commander, the training facility!”

We land and a few more Pigmasks await us. But more importantly, a man. At least, I think he’s one. I recognise him – from the video Porky showed me. If memory serves me correctly, this must be Fassad. His position shows - he’s the only person here who doesn’t wear a mask, a sign of his high ranking. Like in the video, he has a white uniform on. His moustache looks like it’s been groomed, although I personally think it looks ridiculous.

The reason I question his masculinity is because while he has the physique and posture of a man, his face has some… oddities. He has what seems to be make up on his cheeks. There seems to be a hint of eye shadow as well. And finally, beneath his cap, I can see a few bits of hair, most of which are brown, but a few are pink. In all fairness though, the hair is probably the least strange thing considering that I have orange hair, which I don’t believe is natural. Actually, what if my hair and Fassad’s hair were both dyed?

“Nwehehehe! So you are the one the magnificent Master Porky has told us about! Our saviour. Yes, I can see it. You are exactly who we are looking for! The person who will let us crush the people of Tazmily and all who are allied with them!”

I suppose it’s fitting that his voice sounds like a man’s voice with feminine touches sprinkled within. Like with his body, it seems to be predominantly male, so I’ll go with that.

“It’s quite interesting – my reputation precedes me, and I haven’t even done anything yet.” I reply.

“Nwehehehehe! Your reputation is much more impressive than you think. Surviving the might of a Drago, destroying a reinforced capsule and befriending Master Porky. And to top it all off, the secret power within you. Nwehehehehe!”

Two things: this guy really likes his ‘Nwehehehehe’ laugh. It’s a little strange, and I won’t lie – with Fassad’s already strange voice, it really does sounds like a pig squealing. Impressive…? Secondly, befriending Porky is something impressive? He’s a excellent king and seems friendly with everyone. Then again, he allowed me to call him Porky, and everyone else I’ve seen adds ‘Master’ or refers to him as the king. In all the years that Porky has lived, has he never had a friend? No, he didn’t, because everyone always saw him as this fat chubby kid. Then, Ness destroyed any chance of him gaining a friend by destroying Porky. As if smashing a balloon with an axe. But he failed. I am Porky’s friend.

“Secret powers, I used them to destroy the capsule you speak off. Not very secret, wouldn’t you agree?”

“Not very secret at all. So it’s a good thing I wasn’t talking about your lightning. It’s a power that few have. A power that will let you reshape the world as we know it.”

I honestly don’t know what to say to that. Is this a PSI technique, or is it something more? For now, I don’t reply.

“Enough of that, I suppose. The present is far more important than the future, or the past. Into the training facility!”

And we do just that. There are quite a number of Pigmasks here, all doing various things in different rooms. Some are running on these weird machines which seem to have this platform that pushes them back, while they try not to get flung off. Others seem to be testing their strength by lifting as much as they can. A few seem to be practicing their aim by firing at various targets. Strangely, Fassad is taking me past all these rooms to some stairs. Hm… I wonder if… do I have to press something or… no, it appears I simply need to will it and it happens.

_‘Name: Fassad’_

_‘Age: Undisclosed’_

_‘Gender: Unknown’_

_‘Family: 6 brothers/sisters. Names: Undisclosed’_

_‘Leading officer of Pigmask Army. Other roles undisclosed.’_

_In order to view all information, Omega Level Access is required. Current access level is Alpha._

This tells me… pretty much nothing. The only thing I know now that I didn’t before is that he has 6 siblings. His gender is unknown as well – I thought he was strange but I didn’t think I would be right. I suppose I need higher access to find out, maybe I’ll get that if I become Commander. Now that I think about it, in that movie, with all the PSI the ‘heroes’ used, Alpha was the lowest level and Omega was the highest. It’ll be hard to gain that kind of access. Why is Fassad shrouded in so much mystery?

With heavy amounts of hesitation, I continue to follow the Pigmask leader up the stairs. When we reach the top, Fassad leads me to a room with some Pigmasks jogging around the room. One Pigmask in the centre of the room is barking (or would that be squealing) various orders at the others. He looks different – more muscular and his mask has horns on his head. I’ll admit – he looks rather fierce.

“All right maggots! Give me 50 push-ups or no DCMC for you!” shouts the Scary Looking Pigmask.

“Aww… why do we have to do this?” is the collective reply.

“Because if you want to be like me, you have to push through the pain! And if you don’t…”

The Scary Looking Pigmask holds up a metallic box with a metal rod on it and leans back, as if meaning to throw it. The Pigmasks all stop and freeze – I imagine I would see looks of horror on their faces if it weren’t for masks. Actually, why do they wear their masks inside the training facility? I suppose it’s a uniform as well. Either way, the Pigmasks immediately start the push ups requested. The box must be very important to them.

“Nwehehehehehe! Good to see you taking the phrase ‘sweat like a pig’ to its limits, Trooper!

“What? Ah, Mr Fassad! Yes, these little piglets are still far too tender for my liking. Still, they’re all getting tougher.”

“Reckon you handle another? This one is very special.”

It’s at this point that the Scary Looking Pigmask turns his attention to me, examining me carefully.

“He’s younger than most. I normally wouldn’t take a kid like you. But you’re no ordinary kid, are you? Let’s see what you’ve got.”

Taking this as an indication to join them, I enter the room. All the Pigmasks have stopped doing their push ups, their eyes on me. The Scary Looking Pigmask notices this as well.

“Did I say you could stop? No! Get back to your push ups if you value your music! As punishment, you all go back to 0 push-ups!”

The Pigmasks restart their push-ups and the Scary Looking Pigmask gestures at me to join them. I take a second to observe the Pigmasks and then start doing the push-ups. It’s surprisingly not that bad – while the Pigmasks seem to be struggling, I find it relatively simple. While I’m doing so, I decide to gain a little insight on this trainer.

_‘Name: Gorgeous’ _

_‘Age: 34’_

_‘Gender: Male’_

_‘Family: None registered’_

_‘Fiercest of all the Pork Troopers, only the very best soldiers train under him. He also leads New Pork City’s biggest DCMC fan club.’_

His name isn’t very indicative of what he’s actually like. That’s my 30th push up – and my arms are starting to ache a bit. But I have to keep going… push past the pain. I will prove that I… can do it. For Master… Porky. 10 more. Don’t… give up… now… I am… strong. 5. 4. 3. 2. 1. Finished.

I collapse from sheer exhaustion. When I look up, I see the Fierce Pork Trooper. He looks at me and it’s hard to see, given the mask, but I think he’s momentarily surprised. He offers me a hand up… and a thumbs ups. I notice that the Pigmasks have already finished and are watching me. I was last? I suppose I’m not as strong as I think…

“Bah! It took you lot 5 minutes to finish those 50 push ups and this kid here finishes them in 8 minutes! You should be much faster than that!

“Yeah, but he’s got those enhancements!” retorts one of the Pigmasks.

The others start to back him up with various statements of agreement. The Fierce Pork Trooper just puts a hand to his face in annoyance, as if he’s heard this a million times. And then…

“SHUT UP! You all come up with some new argument every single day! If only you could devote some of that excuse making to your push-ups! I don’t care if he has enhancements, because that alone wasn’t what gave him his strength! It was his will power. His drive. And none of you have that. Well done kid. Right! A ten minute break, and then it’s off to the battle sector!”

The Pigmasks all take a sigh of relief and take a seat on the benches. I notice some of them eyeing me. Meanwhile, the Fierce Pork Trooper walks over to Fassad.

“Mr Fassad. I have to admit I wasn’t sure if the king made the right decision. I stand corrected.”

“I leave him with you then. Nwehehehe!”

And with that, Fassad took his leave, eating a banana along the way. The Fierce Pork Trooper notices me watching.

“So. How much did you hear?”

“All of it. I finished last though. Why do you think the king made the right choice? I can’t even compare to the best Pigmasks! I’m not strong enough to be Commander.”

“Not with that attitude. I like you kid. You have high standards. And that is exactly why you should be Commander. You just did 50 push ups in 7 minutes. That’s quite the feat for a child. And with some time and practice, you’ll be better than all these chumps.”

“Why… why are you so harsh?”

The Fierce Pork Trooper chuckles.

“Because these chumps have the potential. I saw you looking at me and I’m not the smartest person, but that eye of yours has some special properties. As you know, I only train the best. These chumps are the best, so in order to get better, they have to be pushed. And yes…” He lowers his voice. “Gorgeous really is my name. But don’t tell anyone.”

The Fierce Pork Trooper glances at his watch.

“Right then! Off to the battle sector!”

“But sir, it’s only been five minutes!”

“And it’ll take five minutes to get there.”

The Fierce Pork Trooper simply laughs while the Pigmasks collectively groan. I’m guessing he does this a lot. I follow them to a firing range.

“All right then, you know what to do.”

Some of the Pigmasks draws a laser gun and starts firing at the various targets. Others throw these spheres that explode. Strangely, one or two start saying terrible things for some reason. I notice a stand with some laser guns on it and make my towards it.

“Not so fast. You don’t need one of those.”

He points to my arm. I remember, I was given an arm cannon. I turn my hand into the cannon and take aim. The target’s exactly 10m away, according to my eye. I can do this. Concentrating on the target, I focus all my energy.

_‘Charging cannon, power: 10%’_

It feels rather natural – I can feel the energy building up in my arm.

_‘Power: 15%, 20%, 30%’_

It’s so much power though. Enough to obliterate the target.

_‘Power: 40%, 60%, 90%’_

My arm feels like it’s about to drop off. Focus… and… release!

The explosion I hear tells me two things: Firstly, this arm cannon is incredibly powerful and secondly, I missed. Badly. It looks like I destroyed a section of the wall, but it was many inches of the target. All the Pigmasks take a moment to observe the damage before returning to what they were doing.

“Power: yes, accuracy: noooooo. You need to try and stabilise your arm – if it’s wobbling like that, you have a hard time hitting anything. Power is important, but it’s of no use if it isn’t controlled and focused. Course, if you’re like me, you’ll just beat someone to a pulp with your muscles! Arrrggh! Those two are annoying me. They can’t do anything properly!”

Oddly enough, he’s looking at the two Pigmasks saying terrible things.

“You two! I’ve heard kids insult better than that! How do you hope to demoralise an enemy with wimpy things like that? Let me show you.”

He starts listing off so many nasty things. I feel like I could cry on the spot. By the end of it, everyone is in shock at what he just said.

Trying to forget everything I just heard, I return to the targets again. I prepare myself and fire at the targets once more. Shot after shot. The good news is, I’m destroying less of the wall. The bad news is, well, I’m still destroying the wall. Nevertheless, practice is key. I decide to try and use less power – hopefully that’ll make aiming easier. My next shot misses, although it’s closer than any of my shots and at least it didn’t destroy as much of the wall due to me using less power. That was 10% of max power. I feel comfortable with this amount of power, so I try again with the same amount.

Again, I miss, but still I’m getting closer. I take a few more shots and on my 6th shot, I hit the target for the first time! Nice! I take some more shots, until I’m able to consistently hit the target.

So now, I suppose I’ll try with higher power. I go for 15% this time, and even though it’s only a 5% difference, it feels so much harder. I have to take a moment to stabilise my arm and when I fire, unsurprisingly, I miss. Just got to keep going at it…

The next hour or so is filled with me constantly trying to adjust to the power in small increments. It’s the same thing – I struggle at first, get used to it and then I start hitting the target with consistency. It’s a little tedious, I won’t deny but I must get stronger. For Porky’s sake. The commander of the Pigmasks will need to be stronger than this. I am weak now, but if I put in the effort, I will be strong enough to overcome any foe.

I’m gonna get stronger! I’m gonna get so strong even Dragos won’t stand a chance against me!

But… do I need this? Wasn’t this violence, this quest for power, what caused me to be like this in the first place?

No. No, no, no, it was the people of Tazmily. Their cruelty led to your situation.

The Dragos had nothing to with this – they were merely an unfortunate pawn in this mess. I suppose I shouldn’t say I’ll be strong enough so Dragos won’t stand against me. Rather…

I’m gonna get so strong that no one in Tazmily will stand a chance against me.

Much better.

And at least some of my effort has paid off – by the end of the hour, I can use about 25% of my power and hit the target somewhat consistently.

“Okay chumps, lunch break!”

The Pigmasks all cheer and head to an area where I presume they have lunch. Indeed, they go to a room with tables and food being served. The Pigmasks rush to get some stuff. For once, they actually take off their masks! After all, they can’t eat with them on. They’re all humans, just like me! I’ll admit, I thought they were just robots. I suppose that shows what a mask can make you look like…

There’s all sorts of things to eat, but I personally just go for a sandwich. I would go for a ham one, but that seems offensive and I spot an egg sandwich. For some reason, I feel compelled to have that.

“Alright then. I suppose, you maggots have done a somewhat good job. So, as a small reward…” he picks up the metallic box. “It’s time for some DCMC!”

“Yeah! Tonda Gossa!” they all shout.

What does Tonda Gossa even mean? Why are they all excited? Oh, and most importantly…

“What’s DCMC?”

All the soldiers look at me with horror on their face, as if I’d just slaughtered a bunch of animals and said I liked it. The Fierce Pork Trooper almost drops the box. Evidently, this DCMC is something important.

“Oh wait, you’ve got amnesia. The Desperado Crush Mambo Combo – or DCMC for short, are the best band in the entire world! Their music is legendary!”

Yes, my analysis showed that he is the leader of a DCMC fan club. I assume all these soldiers are a part of this fan club as well, given how the Fierce Pork Trooper threatened them by restricting their music. The soldiers are all listening intently and I must admit – I can see the appeal in the music. I’ve never heard something as catchy as this! Each band member plays their parts with beautifully and all of them are in sync. If I had to pick a favourite, I’d say I rather like the bassist, Lucky. We all listen to the band play for the next hour or so before the DCMC bid us Nantekodda.

“Nothing like a bit of DCMC to lift your spirits! Chumps, it’s time for some physical training! Back to the training room!”

The soldiers all put their pigmasks back on before returning to the room where Fassad left me. Instead of doing push-ups, they start to battle in pairs. I would join in, but all the Pigmasks are in pairs and it wouldn’t be fair – I would easily decimate them. I was given these enhancements after all, no ordinary soldier would stand a chance. Luckily, the Fierce Pork Trooper has a solution.

“Kid, you’ll be training with me.”

“Very well, but I won’t hold back.”

“Oh hoh, a feisty one! You may be stronger than the average person – but I’m far from average. You make the first move.”

I take a good look at him. He’s assumed a defensive stance. I see an opening so I charge at him and throw a punch with my metallic arm. He merely blocks. I try a kick and he doesn’t even bother to block this time. Arrrrggh! Why is nothing working against him! Once again, I punch him, going for his face, which should definitely hurt him. The next thing I feel is the pain running through my hand. It feels like I just punched a brick wall… no rather metal?

“Hahaha! These masks do a lot more than just look intimidating!”

That’s right, one of the Pigmasks that took me to New Pork City said that their suits give them protection. I suppose it’s only logical that their masks do as well.

The Fierce Pork Trooper decides to make a move. He quickly rushes towards me – and I have no interest in trying to block against him! I sidestep equally as fast and kick his leg, which is the first thing that I’ve done to hurt him – but it works as well as a homemade knife against a Drago. For now, I suppose I’ll just keep moving.

All right, physical attacks clearly aren’t going to work against this guy. He’s far too bulky and he’s got some thick armour. But given his size, as well the fact that he’s trying to beat me into submission, he probably relies on physical attacks as well. If I can get some distance on this guy, I’ll have the advantage, as I can attack him with my arm cannon but he’ll have no way of attacking back.

After dodging him another time, I decide to try the strategy I’ve devised. I put some distance in between the two of us, while switching to the arm cannon. I can’t reliably hit something if I use over 25% power so I charge up until I’ve reached 20% and then fire. By the time the Fierce Pork Trooper realises what I’ve done, it’s too late for him to dodge and it’s a direct hit. All the Pigmasks stop their battles upon hearing the explosion. Some are shocked, while others are wondering if the Fierce Pork Trooper is all right. Some are whispering about how strong I must be to beat their trainer and who’s tougher.

He’s strong – but I’m stronger!

_‘I had you watch that movie as a lesson. A lesson not to assume.’_

For some reason, I’m reminded of Porky’s lesson to me and once the smoke clears, I realise I’ve failed to properly understand his lesson.

The Fierce Pork Trooper emerges, his hands over his chest. I guess he still had time to block. But how? Did he know that was what I was going to do?

“Nice shot kid. Yeah, you’re certainly better than all these chumps… all these chumps who need to GET BACK TO SPARRING!”

The Pigmasks all hurry back into their groups and continue sparring, but I can see them occasionally taking glances at us.

“Trying to go for me at a distance to get an advantage. You’re smart, I’ll give you that. But will brains triumph over brawn? No!”

He takes another charge at me and I decide to go for the same trick again, taking a graceful leap over the Fierce Pork Trooper. When I land, I notice something behind me and before I know it, I’m being launched across the room. Evidentially, he anticipated that idea and performed a roundhouse kick in response.

Still, being launched across the room gave me the distance I need, and I once again charge my cannon and fire. The Fierce Pork Trooper jumps over the shot and with all the smoke, I can’t see him. I hear something fall near me so I try and get out of the way as quick as I can, but when he lands, his does so with such a large force that I fall over. He lumbers towards me and although I try to scram, he’s quicker and picks me up.

Fear. That’s all I can feel.

I’m completely at his mercy. I can’t do anything. His grip is far too strong.

What will he do to me? It can’t end like this, I should be stronger them him!

“An admirable effort on your part, but I think you’ll have to concede defeat. Don’t worry, you had no chance of beating me. As it is, you’re far too weak to do anything lasting.”

I… I can’t… no, I’m… I just… I just want… I just…

I want to cry. But I can’t. I’m not… I’m not a crybaby!

I’m not weak! I survived what should have killed me!

I was enhanced to be stronger than anyone else could hope to become! I have mastered the power of thunder – it bows down to me!

I am the Commander! And you dare call me weak?

“I’ll show you…how weak I am!”

_‘Warning. High fluctuations in blood pressure.’_

This feeling… it’s so familiar. I know exactly what to do this time. Envision it, the lightning breaking down on to your foe.

“Hey kid, you aren’t responding to anything I’m saying.”

Guide it onto them, draw from your anger and let it fuel your desire to destroy.

_‘Continuing current activities is ill advised.’_

Now focus. Control the power, don’t let it get out of hand.

“Kid? You’re freaking me out here.”

Remember, power is of no use if uncontrolled.

_‘PSI detected. Specimen advised to stop.’_

It’s a strange sensation – lightning coercing through my veins.

“Kid, what’s with that sparking around you?”

I look into the Trooper’s eyes.

_‘High voltage levels detected within.’_

“PK Thunder!”

My lightning strikes the Fierce Pork Trooper and he yells… no, rather, he shrieks in horror.

In a strange way, it’s so… satisfying? Yes, satisfying.

To see that which hurt you, feel the same pain.

All the Pigmasks look at me with pure, abject horror.

“You’ve killed him!” I hear one shout.

For a minute, I think I have. He doesn’t move. Suddenly, I’m regretting everything. While it felt good in the short term, in the long term… he didn’t deserve it, I was just angry.

_‘No one is what they seem. Behind the kindest face may lie a monster.’_

I’m not… I am different. I didn’t mean to hurt him. I don’t believe I’m superior, like those children did!

But… I do. I said I was more powerful than all of the Pigmasks. I said these enhancements made me stronger. I thought I was the strongest. But I’m the weakest one here.

It’s a small mercy that the Fierce Pork Trooper gets up.

“I’m fine, I’m fine!” He insists. All the other Pigmasks rush to help him, but he simply pushes them away. “I think that’s enough training for today. You’re all free to go. Go on, get out.”

All the Pigmasks leave in a horrified hurry.

“He’s made us train overtime before, but this is the first time I’ve seen him let us go early!”

The first time? What have I done?

For the first time, I feel… regret.

I find one of the Pigmasks that I was training with and despite their initial shock, they told me I could stay at the barracks with them. The beds aren’t very comfortable but with all this metal and guilt on my back, I hardly notice. Somehow, I manage to get to sleep.

As strange as it sounds, I wish I would have a nightmare. Just so I could feel the pain as well. But I know that won’t happen – I haven’t had any dreams at all since I was made into a chimera, so I’m guessing it has something to do with the process as a side effect.

I suppose, in an ironic way, this dreamless sleep is its own nightmare.

Upon waking up, my systems tell me it’s 5:07. Wait, 5:07? That’s earlier than I’ve ever woken up. I suppose I don’t need to sleep as much thanks to my parts. I may as well go and start training. Making my way through the dark isn’t as hard as one might assume, thanks to my new eye. The training facility has a few Pigmasks already, but I ignore them and go to the firing range.

Charge, aim and fire. Over and over again. How long have I been doing this for? It doesn’t matter. But eventually…

“For a kid, you sure don’t sleep a lot, do you?”

It’s the Fierce Pork Trooper.

“Still, good to see that you’re keen to be stronger. I wonder, why do you want to be stronger? To prove yourself? Or is it something more?”

I… don’t know. That’s something to think about later. There’s something else more prevalent now.

“About yesterday…” I start.

“Yeah, I thought these psychic powers were a myth, even after seeing Mr Fassad, but you’ve convinced me otherwise.”

“I’m sorry about… hurting you.”

“Sorry? Sorry? Why? That’s the entire point of fighting! To hurt the other person!”

“Hurting is a little different than seriously injuring.”

“Fair enough. You would know about serious injuries, wouldn’t you? I can tell that despite your memory loss, your morals are still intact. But listen kid: some people are too dangerous to be left with just some scrapes. Some people are too dangerous to be left alive.”

“So how do I decide?”

“How do you think? It’s important that you don’t kill everyone you see, but you got to be prepared for when you’re facing a tough opponent. It’s a judgment call.”

“A tricky one at that.”

“Life is tricky. If there’s one piece of advice I can give, it’s to trust the king. He never led us wrong.”

“He’s never led me wrong either.”

“Exactly. Now, as good as it to see you here early… scratch that, very early.” He says after glancing at his watch. “It doesn’t make sense for you to be here without everyone else.”

“So do I have to go back to sleep?”

“Do you want to?”

The look in my eyes must say it all, because he chuckles and runs his hands together.

“Right, it’s not fair for you to be hear without the rest of the chumps. Get a bucket from the janitor’s room, fill it with water and meet me at the entrance.”

Despite being confused as to what he means, I follow his instructions regardless. My map easily gets me to the room and I get the largest bucket. I fill it with water from the cafeteria and go to the entrance.

“Quick, aren’t we? And good, a big bucket. Now follow me.”

The two of us go back to the barracks – the Fierce Pork Trooper uses a flashlight to guide the way, and go to the area where I was sleeping. I have a good idea as to what the Fierce Pork Trooper is planning but I remain silent. When we reach the room, he motions for me to give the bucket, which I do, and also to remain silent. He quietly walks to each soldier (an impressive feat considering his size and armour) and as I thought, dunks some water onto them. Soon, all of them are spluttering, among some swears and death threats. Neither of us can contain our laughter.

“Hello boys.”

“Sir! Commander!”

“Now that, you’re all awake, it’s time for training! Training facility in 20 minutes!

The soldiers don’t even groan - they’ve definitely come to expect this by now.

20 minutes later, all of us are at the training facility, doing various exercises. It’s hard and extremely exhausting, but it feels worthwhile. I think the Pigmasks have warmed up to me a bit more as well – they no longer look at me as if I’m a complete stranger.

At lunch, I get an egg sandwich again and we all rock out to some DCMC. Tonda Gossa! Of course, out of everyone here, the Fierce Pork Trooper is by far enjoying himself the most.

And afterwards, it’s off to the firing range to break the targets! I decide to try using 40% power this time. Charge, aim and release!

And I miss completely. Again.

Oh well. All I need is practice and then I’ll be stronger. One day, I’ll be the strongest one in this facility!

The Fierce Pork Trooper asked me why I wanted to become stronger.

I want to become stronger, to prove myself. To prove I’m worthy of being the Commander. To prove I’m worthy of being Porky’s friend.

Never stop becoming stronger.

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So if it weren't obvious from the title, Strong One - the Masked Man's variation of it, is my favourite battle song in the game (It Is Finished is technically a battle song as well but I'm not counting it). Also, is it just me or does anyone else notice the irony in Strong One, specifically regarding the fact that none of the enemies it plays for constituent as a Strong One? 
> 
> The Barrier Trio is not one foe, but three. The Negative Man is just weak. The Heftyheads and Hippo Launchers are just normal foes. And of course, the Masked Man is a strong one on the outside but rather weak on the inside - although this makes the two distinct parts of Strong One as well as the random skipping of the Masked Man's rendition make all the more sense.  
Musical analysis over, it was fun writing the Fierce Pork Trooper. He has a lot of admiration for the Masked Man in Mother 3 - which has gotta come from somewhere. And that was my inspiration for this chapter. 
> 
> Two things to discuss: I believe the Magyspies naturally have pink hair (and dyed Kumatora's hair pink as well), but when Fassad betrayed them, he became the antithesis of what the Magyspies represented. 
> 
> Next, for those unaware, Nantekodda is some form of slang for goodbye for the DCMC (much like how Tonda Gossa is a greeting). The Fierce Pork Trooper's name, Gorgeous, is named after a member of the Runaway Five, which also doubles as Duster's DCMC name if you decide to name Duster Lucky. (Incidentally, naming Kumatora Violet has her alternate identity become Kumatora). I found it really cool that the game avoids an Edgar - Gerad situation from FF6 if you will.
> 
> I did want to have Claus visit Dr Andonuts but I figured that was best left for another time. Speaking of which, this is the last chapter with any sort of major plot (well, debatably major since none of this is technically new) for a while. The next couple of chapters will be shorter (and thank god because writing these long chapters is hard, especially trying to keep them interesting) and they’ll be about various things that I imagine happening to Claus over the 3 year time jump. They’ll all still be related to the main story, but simply put, the Thunder Tower is some time off.
> 
> Next time, the reunion between the chimera and the doctor! Thank you to everyone whose been reading this!


	7. The Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claus meets Dr Andonuts once again for a check up, finding a rather interesting book on PSI.

Another day of training done. Phew.

I’ve been training for 15 days at this training facility and I can tell I’m getting stronger – I can do the 50 push ups in 7 minutes now! My aim with my arm cannon is getting better as well. Most importantly, I’m learning how to control my psychic powers. Every day, I practise hitting the Fierce Pork Trooper (in a rubber suit) with PK Thunder. It’s really hard to aim though – as I’ve found out, focus is key but in a real fight, maintaining that focus will be hard.

One day, I remember Fassad walking in while I was practising using my powers.

“Nwehehehe! So you’ve got the handle of your thunder powers. But that’s child’s play compared to this! PK Thunder Omega!”

Four powerful lightning bolts crash down onto the Fierce Pork Trooper and even with the rubber suit on, he gets flung back and singed.

Incredible… I remember seeing the ‘heroes’ perform this very attack, but to see it in real life is something else. Fassad is a really powerful psychic… I shudder to think what else he’s capable of. He explains to me the four levels of PSI: Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Omega. Once a psychic masters one level of PSI, they learn the next level.

Additionally, the Fierce Pork Trooper says that now that my arms are getting stronger, I can consider using a weapon. I don’t fancy kicking people like the Pigmasks do and although I’m strong for a kid, pummelling people doesn’t seem like the best use of that strength.

Of all the weapons I’ve seen, swords seem the coolest. Unfortunately, I can’t just start using one straight away – swords aren’t very safe after all, so I’m to start by using a stick. I wouldn’t think that there’s much of an art to hitting someone with a stick, but there is. Swinging to hit multiple targets, jabs, thrusts and my favourite, the power smash. The Fierce Pork Trooper also teaches me how to gather my strength to pummel foes and stiffen my body to withstand heavy blows. I can’t say I’m a big fan of brute force, but it might come in handy.

But that’s not what’s important. Today’s rather special, because this is the first day in which I don’t have any training in the afternoon, owing to the Fierce Pork Trooper needing to attend a meeting. With permission, I decide to finally pay Dr Andonuts a visit. Dr Andonuts said I need to visit him occasionally for a check up on my parts. Kill two birds with one stone, I suppose. It’s almost lunch though, so I hope it’ll be quick. See, to compensate for the afternoon of training we miss, the Fierce Pork Trooper made us work twice as hard, and so I feel twice as hungry.

Although I would like to simply soar through the sky, this is the first actual flight I’ve made, so it’s probably for the best if I stay towards the ground. Still, the feeling is awesome! The wind rushing past my face, zipping past everything, everything flashing by… it’s incredible.

The view’s nice as well – the purple forest makes me feel at piece. The wildlife however isn’t what I would expect – I see strange creatures that are mixtures between kangaroos and sharks as well as pig shaped flowers. By far the strangest thing I see, is a large door of sorts that has a series of strange poses on it. It looks like poses for a… dance? How peculiar.

Soon enough, I reach the laboratory and for the first time, I notice the building itself seems to be a chimera, given the animal head that’s fused onto the front of the building. Inside the reception, I walk over to the Pigmask there. I wonder if it’s the same one that greeted me when I left here.

“Ah, Commander. What brings you to Chimera Laboratory?”

“I was asked to come here for a check- up.”

“You’ll be looking for Dr Andonuts then. He’s working on a chimera on the… let’s see… ah, the second floor. Room 23. Be careful you don’t wonder into the other rooms – some of these chimeras are quite dangerous and hard to control!

Making my way to the room isn’t very hard, but all throughout the laboratory, I can hear all sorts of machines – drills mostly, coupled with the various noises of animals. The screams are jarring to say the least, but they don’t compare to the roars. The roars of some of the chimeras will haunt me for some time…

Room 23. I suppose I’ll be polite and knock.

“Yes, who is it?”

“Dr Andonuts?” I have to think about his question since I just realised, I don’t have a name. Well…

“It’s the Commander.”

“Oh, do come on in.”

The lab the doctor’s in is a strange one to say the least – if only because of the red and yellow striped chimera with a ridiculous nose behind the glass. That, and the fact that Dr Andonuts is sitting in a chair, eating… donuts. Why does that bother me so much?

“You know, you’re the first person whose actually knocked on the door and not just come in.”

“What? Isn’t the work you do here really dangerous and something that requires a lot of concentration and focus? You could working on something delicate, someone comes in and you accidentally slice the chimera or yourself!”

“Exactly. But no one ever listens. You’ve heard of Fassad, haven’t you?” I nod. “Yes, well in addition to him leaving banana peels everywhere, he seems to love bursting in on me at the most inopportune moments. He did so frequently during the time I spent working on you. Although, I suppose that was to make sure everything was going all right.”

“What do you mean? I thought this was safe?”

“Safe is a not an accurate way of putting it at all. The process for making these chimeras is simple, in the sense that if everything was the same , the results would be reproducible. Technology is often not the limiting factor – in fact, in my own time period, I was able to make chimeras.”

“With technology that was less advanced?”

“Amazing how far things advance. The king might call that chimera primitive in comparison, it was a fusion between a man and a building, a dungeon in fact.”

“So would that make me the second human chimera, after this dungeon man?”

“Yes. But also no. Words change over time. What was considered a chimera is now something much less. What I created back then was more of a building piloted by a man. A robot that could be controlled on the inside. You are much different – a fusion between man and machine. Someone who can make the decisions of a human with the power, speed and accuracy of a machine. And believe me, it was by no means, safe.”

“So it was likely I would die. I suppose it makes sense. The injuries I had taken would have made my chances of survival low… if looking at this optimistically.”

“Precisely. But human spirit is stronger than we give it credit for. It’s something I learned from people just like you. No one is the same. In the same situation, two people will always have different opinions, different thoughts and different reactions. With these chimeras, the process is always the same, but every organism is different, so the outcome is similar, yet different. Identical people are impossible. Even twins, will always have differences. Of all creatures out there, humans have the most differences in thoughts. The Human Chimera Project wanted to combine that difference, the diversity in each person, and enhance it with machine. Evidentially, that spirit came through for you.”

Human spirit. It’s a strange concept, combining the very thing that cannot be artificially created, with machines. It worked as well. It feels like I have this enhanced amount of awareness with all my decisions. But I can commit to them more, because the machines make me more focused. Unwavering. Every decision I make is my own, and yet, not.

“How come there are no more plans for other human chimeras?”

“I said that if everything was the same, the outcome for making these chimeras would be the same. But they aren’t, because every organism is different. Simulations showed how strenuous this process would be – potentially lethal for those who weren’t strong enough. We had to discontinue the project because the risk would be far too great. I’ll be quite frank – when you were brought in, this operation was a last resort. And somehow it worked. Amazing, isn’t it? I disagree with the king on more matters than I’d care to admit, including chimeras on a whole – but the one point of interest that he and I share, is regarding strength of will. What people can do in the most desperate of times, when all seems bleak. And the king’s strength of will, is certainly very strong… perhaps too strong in many ways.”

“He certainly was determined to make something of himself, even when all seemed lost for him. When he lost his form entirely, because of…” I decide not to go further. “He enlisted you, didn’t he?”

Dr Andonuts gives a look as if he’s been forced to drink poison.

“Yes, enlisted is one way of putting it. Forced to leave everything you knew behind… I suppose in that regards, we’re very much alike. Forgive me, but you remind me of a child… long gone….”

He’s struggling so much not to cry. As much as I would like to pursue this topic, I think I know the answer and I wouldn’t be so cruel as to continue this topic. Human spirit can be strong, but Dr Andonuts’s is all but crushed.

“Still, I can’t help but wonder if it was mere chance that I survived. Much like how it was chance that you haven’t had any accidents from interruptions.”

“Indeed. I’m surprised though - I’d have thought my luck would be long gone by now, but it’s only a matter of time. Still, at least I haven’t had any interruptions while working on this chimera.”

“What is that?”

“That is a chimera I’ve been working on, a Pump Chimera, or as I like to call it, Mr Pump.” He says with a chuckle. “It’s designed for moving large amounts of water from one area to another.”

“When would you ever need something like that?”

“Good question. But orders are orders. Either way, I’m not particularly fond of it. The sooner I move onto something else, the better. Ah, you didn’t come to hear me babble on about chimeras. I take it you’re here for a check up?

“Indeed. It won’t be painful, will it?

“No, no, assuming you haven’t broken anything. Right then, I’ll need to get a book with all my notes on you. Actually, why don’t you come with me? After all, safety in numbers which goes doubly so in this lab.”

The library the doctor goes to is rather small, yet all the shelves seemed packed with books. It’s a rather strange and disorganised way of keeping everything - wouldn’t it be smarter to have a bigger room with more shelves and less books on each shelf, so it would be easier to find things? Either way, while Dr Andonuts is looking for his notes, I decide to have a look around the library myself.

There’s a book called ‘Overcoming Shyness’. I think I might have once known someone who would have found this book useful… someone I knew very well. But the books next to it are what really interest me. They’re all books on PSI. _‘PSI and I’, ‘Psychic Powers Through The Ages’, ‘Psychic Science’, ‘Psionics or Psychokinesis?’ _and perhaps the most interesting and ominous sounding, _‘Psycho Psychic Gods’._

** **

That ‘Psycho Psychic Gods’ one certainly sounds like a good read. Maybe I’ll have a look at it while Dr Andonuts looks for his notes. On the front cover are 6 strange looking people who all have female features on their faces, yet look distinctly male…

“Ah, here they are! Human Chimera Project.”

To my surprise, Dr Andonuts is not holding a book, or anything, for that matter. Instead, he’s looking at the wall, which has a bunch of compartments with locks, one of which is marked ‘Human Chimera Project’. He opens it up with a key and takes some files out.

“These are very important, hence we keep them in safes to make sure no one can take them.”

“Why not just store them on a database?”

“It would be somewhat detrimental for me, seeing as this information would be highly classified, and my access level is limited to Beta.”

What? Why would the director of the Chimera Laboratory only be limited to Beta classified stuff? That’s seems very counterproductive. I suppose it’s not up to me to question these things though. As the Commander, my job is just that – to command.

The two of us go to the room in which I awoke, a room I had hoped I wouldn’t have to return to, but it seems I have little choice.

“Right, step into the Instant Revitalising Device there and I’ll do the rest.”

He points to a tall metal capsule, with the Pigmask insignia on it. If I recall, Porky tried to use one of these, to little avail. However, it works fine for me. Feels exactly like I’ve had a good night’s sleep. I feel perfectly fine – except for my hunger.

“Well then, you seem to be fine. Your body shows signs of being pushed and stressed, but I suppose that’s because of your training. I swear, that Trooper needs to learn the definition of a break.”

“Ironic you should say that, because the rest of today is my break.”

“And despite that, you looked rather exhausted before. I notice you’re missing some fuel – did you fly here?”

“Yes, and I intend to fly back.”

“Hm, well that explains it. You seem to still have plenty of fuel, so I won’t bother with a refill. One more thing, the systems report use of PSI. I suppose you’ve learned how to use it?”

“Indeed, although I’m only capable of using the weakest form of PK Thunder.”

“Weakest form, yet rather strong, if the system alerts of high voltage levels are anything to by. I can’t say I’m all that curious to see what the strongest form would be. Struggling to aim it?”

“Most certainly. I’m only able to hit the Fierce Pork Trooper, who could be considered a relatively large target, 74.3% of the time.”

“What? My goodness, psychics must have gotten a lot better over time. In my age, it was far more inaccurate. I suppose you must have a real talent for it then. Either way, everything else seems perfectly fine. You’re free to go, unless you need anything.”

“Thank you. I do not need anything from you, although I was wondering if I might borrow a book or two from the library.”

“Yes, yes, provided you return them and let the receptionist know which books you are taking. By the way, I recommend _‘PSI and I’ _for you.”

How did he know I wanted that? I leave the doctor and return to the library, finding the book in question. The back calls it _‘the complete encyclopaedia for all PSI’._ Perfect. I make to leave, but before I do, my mind wavers to another book… _‘Psycho Psychic Gods’._ I might as well take it and see what I can find. Yet, it sounds foreboding and I get the impression I shouldn’t take it. So of course, I take it and quickly make my exit. I take the books and notify the receptionist.

“Seems like you have a bit of interest in PSI, Commander. It is quite a fascinating area of research. _‘PSI and I’ _, yep that’s fine. And, oh… _‘Psycho Psychic Gods’_. I’ve never heard of this one. Let’s see… looks like you need Gamma Level Access to take this book out. Do you have that?”

“I am the Commander. What do you think?”

“Yeah, that should be fine then. Here you go.”

Thankfully, the Pigmask does not pursue the specifics of my access level any further – for which I’m very thankful of. This book clearly has some important details in it, but what exactly does it contain that would make it so limited in terms of who can read it?

Clutching the two books tightly, I take flight once more, returning to the training facility.

And there had better be something to eat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I try and make a short chapter, and it ends up being longer than I thought! I doubt anyone’s complaining though. Either way, there’s not much to say about this chapter, but I wanted a reunion (which I think is one of the better written endings in Chrono Trigger) and I needed a way to introduce ‘Psycho Psychic Gods’.
> 
> Some references I put in: the Fierce Pork Trooper's brute force techniques are the same as Flint's, Dr Andonuts comment about the accuracy of PK Thunder is one to how in Earthbound, PK Thunder has crap accuracy (to the point where Fire, Freeze, Rockin and once you get it, Starstorm, are always better choices - and neutralisers exist for getting rid of shields.). The nerf to PK Freeze and the accuracy buff to PK Thunder make it far more viable in Mother 3 thankfully.
> 
> The first chimera Dr Andonuts mentioned is Dungeon Man (love his song), Overcoming Shyness is the book given to the Tenda to do just that and the book Psionics or Psychokinesis is one to the inconsistent terminology of PSI in the Mother triology - I use PK, with a few exceptions. Oh, and of course, you're still hungry.
> 
> Next time, Claus helps the Pigmasks with constructing two special robots - one that’s a real shocker and the other that’s as sweet as can be.


	8. Shockingly Sweet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claus assist the Pigmasks with building two very special robots - and finding two very special memories.

Master Porky gave a rather strange order yesterday. He’s ordered the construction of a large tower to the right of the training facility – a tower which is supposed to be used to generate large amounts of electricity to power New Pork City. Apparently, the city is expanding at such a rate that the current methods we have of generating electricity will be insufficient in the near future. Personally, I never noticed this expansion but I suppose I’ve been busy recently.

All the Pigmasks are to stop with their normal jobs and instead assist with the construction of the tower. However, Porky has specifically given orders to me that I’m not to assist with construction and that he has a special job instead. He’s requested that I meet him at Beauty and Tasty so that’s where I’m going now.

The restaurant is completely empty, as it was when I first met Porky. The waitresses are still here, all identical and equally ugly.

“Took you long enough to arrive.” The Pig King wheezes with considerable contempt. I have the impression that this hasn’t been a pleasant day for Porky so I decide to simply take a seat, rather than dispute the fact that I came as soon as I received his message.

“It took you so long to arrive that I ordered for both of us. If you don’t like what I got, then that’s your punishment for your tardiness.”

Definitely hasn’t been a pleasant day for him.

“Bah! Anyway, I have a special task for you, so I hope you feel honoured.”

“Very much, my liege.”

He continues with glee on his face. “Good. Now, I have two robots that need to be constructed. One that will be stationed at the Thunder to guard and protect the generator there. The other will be a robot designed specially to help maintain a certain room in the Thunder Tower that is very important – the room in which I’ll be staying whenever I need to visit. And being the kind person I am, I’ve decided to give you, and a few other lucky Pigmasks, the honour of building both of these robots.”

“Very well, although I have no experience in creating machinery like this and my abilities would be best applied to the construction instead. Would it not be better to ask someone more experienced, like Dr Andonuts?”

“Dr Andonuts is… occupied, shall we say, with another important project. One that cannot afford to be interrupted so, regrettably, he will not assisting you. Besides, you’ll be mostly giving orders and making sure none of the Pigmasks mess anything up or try some sort of sabotage. You are after all, the Commander.”

I may be the Commander, but how do I command people on a subject I have no expertise with? If I didn’t know any better, Porky seems to doing this to hide the construction of the Thunder Tower from me, rather than because my help is required here. Regardless, arguing isn’t going to yield any different results so I might as well accept.

“Very well then. Who knows, I might even learn something.”

“Exactly. Ah, the food. I hope you enjoy steak.”

The waitresses deliver our meals – steak, just as Porky said. Oh yeah, time for a question that I’ve had for a long time…

“Why do all the waitresses look the same?”

“They look the same because they all represent a person. My mother.”

Oh. Oh. I’m very glad I resisted all those urges to laugh and didn’t say anything rude about them because, that would not have ended well…

“It’s stupid. I don’t have any good memories of her at all. Well, unless you count the time she banned from leaving the house for a month, the time she forbade me from going into my own room, even to sleep, the time when she abolished my birthday or the time when she said I couldn’t have dessert for the rest of the decade.”

I almost choke at that last one. No dessert! For an entire decade! That’s no sweet stuff like, nut cookies or ice cream or cake. How do you celebrate a birthday, without cake? Oh wait, his mother banned him from celebrating that at all as well. Which of course is begging for this question: what in the world would persuade Porky to make all the waitresses look like his mother?

Mothers are supposed to protect you. To comfort you. To be there when something’s gone wrong and coddle you, saying ‘everything will be okay.’ They’re supposed to be there by your bed to give you a good night kiss, despite you saying you don’t want one… even though you really do. They’re supposed to be there to… to…

_‘Run! Take your brother and go! Now!’_

To…protect… _why do I… _

_‘Mum! You can’t stay behind! That thing will kill you! Don’t leave us!’_

To… sacrifice themselves… _no, that can’t be…_

_‘GO! Don’t stop running! Find your father!’_

Because of something strong… _he’s so devastated, so hurt._

_The only dream to be had was a single scream._

Because they love you.

What was that? I felt… pulled apart… shattered and scattered throughout time. Maybe that was just me getting angry at hearing such a bad mother. Just my sorrow and pity for Porky for having yet another abuser in his life. Only it was about someone who should be kind to you, so it made me feel more emotional. Yes, that seems logical.

“Your mother… why would you want to remember her?”

“I couldn’t tell you if I tried. It’s a peculiar feeling…I feel like, I just can’t forget her. If I do, a piece of me is missing. After all, she was my mother. And that’s got to mean something.”

But would you want someone so horrible to be associated with you?

“Let’s eat.”

The steak looks as delicious as the burgers did. While the burgers tasted nice, compared to the steak, it might as well be garbage. The flavours of the steak blend wonderfully together, and the texture is just right. It’s the best thing I’ve ever tasted!

“Enjoying yourself?”

“This is wonderful. I’d say it’s probably my favourite food.”

“Your favourite food… I’m glad to hear that. Any questions?”

“Where will I need to go? The Chimera Laboratory?”

“No. The Empire Porky Building has a laboratory on the 57th floor, where non – chimera based projects are handled. I remember designing the Pork Tanks in there… such good memories.” He remarks wistfully. “I hope you too can contribute something as worthwhile. Now off you go! You’ll report to that laboratory every day. You’ve got 2 months to finish both machines. And I demand nothing but perfection…”

The… claws of Porky’s bed machine extend and click menacingly, which I take as my sign to get the heck out. It doesn’t make sense – why is Porky so… moody? I suppose that’s what happens when you live for 10,000 years, or however long Master Porky’s lived for, you have your good days and your bad days. Still, the rapid mood changes are jarring… is this what will happen to me when I grow up?

The Empire Porky Building is easy enough to find – after all, it is the giant building with the giant spikes on the sides. What practical purpose could they possibly serve?

The elevator in the lobby takes me to the 57th floor rather quickly – I feel like I’ll be flung into the ceiling when it stops. Thankfully, that doesn’t happen, and I exit to the laboratory Porky spoke of.

There’s about 30 Pigmasks here, and I notice the different colours they’re wearing. Most are the ordinary pink, but some are blue or green, and one is white, wearing an awesome cloak. Still, what’s with all the different colours?

“It’s the Commander!”

“What brings you here, Commander?” says the white.

“I have been ordered by Master Porky to help and supervise the construction of the two robots you are working on.”

“Oh, I wasn’t aware you had such mechanical prowess!”

“Actually… I don’t have any. However, Master Porky still insists that I help you.”

“Strange, but if the king orders it, we must follow. Come over here so you can see the blueprints.”

One of the blue prints is headed GENE163-1425. It has a diagram of a large robot with a creepy face and two hands. It’s connected to a generator behind it, which powers it and seems to let it utilise electricity. I assume that this is some sort of combat robot or guardian. Given its electrical abilities, it’s likely to be placed in the Thunder Tower. The wires extending from the robot seem to extend to some sort of generator.

The other is headed MROB-6720M. Yeah, that’s just as annoying to say as GENE-whatever. I’ve got to come up with better names for both of these things. Either way, this robot looks more human – save for its metal face. Oh, and the massive claw and drill protruding out of its back. What the Pork were they thinking?! It looks like a maid, given that it has a blue apron.

“Right then, if I’m correct, one of these is some sort of battle robot that utilises electricity – a guardian for the Thunder Tower perhaps? The other is a robotic maid… that also has combat functions. Why would the maid need that?”

“The king thought it would catch people intruding off guard. They see this harmful maid, and then it surprises them! And you are correct, the other is designed to guard the tower.”

“Well, how might I assist you?”

One of the green answers. “Commander, I’ve seen you use lightning powers. I’ve heard rumours it’s PSI. We could use them to measure to test the electrical powers of GENE163-1425.”

The others make sounds of agreement. I suppose that would work. And it’d give me a chance to further improve my PSI.

“It’s agreed then.” Says the white. “To work then!”

The next few weeks are spent building the guardian robot. I don’t actually do all that much – although I am technically in charge of this entire project, being the Commander and all, seeing as I’m not good technically, I mostly assist the others with what I can – they request for me to some tests with PK Thunder as they’ll be basing the thunder abilities of the robot of that. I do make one order though, at the very beginning of the project – to give this robot a name. They’re quite a few names that fly around including: ‘Shock-o-matic 3000’, ‘Large and Charged’ and of course, ‘Thunder Thrasher’.

The vote is for the least dumb name: Mr Genator.

We split into two groups. The first, including myself, spend a large proportion of our time building Mr Genator, assisted by Clayman, these weird clay sculptures brought to life by electricity, but they’re strong nonetheless. The other group works on the wiring as well as making a model generator– Mr Genator is to be connected to the generator of Thunder Tower, so this model will give us a good idea of how this thing works, even if it won’t be as powerful as when it’s actually hooked up to the main generator.

I also get to learn about the different coloured Pigmasks – the colour dictates their rank. Pink is normal but blue is for captains, green is for majors and white is for the colonels. The weaponry they use seems to get better with rank – captains and majors have bombs, for instance. The colonel even shows me her PSI shield device – which does exactly what it sounds like. Apparently, her cloak isn’t just for looks either – it actually grants a great deal of protection against various elements!

Eventually though, we finish and so, it’s time to test it. I’m a bit nervous. See, the success rate of the Pigmasks isn’t exactly very high, so obviously, my expectations aren’t exactly very high. In fact, I think it’ll malfunction. The reason I’m nervous is because Porky demanded perfection.

“Right then. Let’s activate this thing!”

The colonel switches the generator and Mr Genator… I just understand that name now. Clever. Mr Genator springs to life.

“Hello there, we’re the…”. But the colonel doesn’t get much more out than that before Mr Genator responds.

“INTRUDERS! INTRUDERS! ACTIVATING DEFENCE SYSTEM! REPEAT! ACTIVATING DEFENCE SYSTEM! ALL PERSONNEL, IT WOULD BE NICE IF YOU’D EVACUATE IMMEDIATELY!”

I’ll say this now – I take no pleasure in being right on this occasion!

Mr Genator immediately starts swinging both arms around madly, knocking the Pigmasks nearest it back. The ordinary Pigmasks immediately start opening fire on it. The majors and captains throw sticky time bombs on it, which detonate with extreme force. The colonel activates her PSI Shield Device, which envelops us all in a PSI Shield. Despite us all being out of range, Mr Genator stores and then discharges the electricity within it, forcing us all to keep on our toes.

As for myself, I draw my stick and start bashing the heck out of Mr Genator, targeting its wires – after all, that’ll take out its power supply. They’re behind metal though so that plan doesn’t get very far. Either way, Mr Genator evidentially doesn’t like that and uses a powerful paralysing chop attack, as if to say ‘Take that!’. It comes out too quickly for me to dodge and hurts me immensely, especially with my metallic parts. I’m tempered to counter with my own lightning attacks, but it might very well just absorb it and discharge it with deadly power.

_‘System repairs to lower abdomen and back initiated.’_

My back? Wait a minute – I have wings! All right then, I’ll give myself the aerial advantage and attack from there.

I activate my wings and carefully manoeuvre myself so that Mr Genator won’t go for a thunder chop. Grabbing my stick, I dive at him and go for a huge swing, like the Fierce Pork Trooper taught me.

SMAAAASH!

It sounds rather painful, if robots can feel pain that is. Mr Genator grumbles and immediately counters by sending two thunder bolts at me. The first hits me dead centre and it’s only luck that the second misses. I go for a improvised crash landing. It hurts badly – didn’t I have that shield? Let’s see…

_‘Shield status – PSI type, strength: 1. Damage to shield: 0%’_

No damage?! How? I just got hit by a thunder attack – surely the shield should have taken some damage? I’ll have to solve this mystery later. I notice a few Pigmasks rushing to me.

“Are you all right Commander?”

“I’ll be fine.” _System alert! Repairs have stopped due to high voltage disruptions. Commencing in 290 seconds, 289…’_

I hate being wrong.

“Here, eat this.” One of them hands a bag of Pork Chips. I thank him and eat them, they’re a bit too greasy and salty, but they restore some energy at least.

Right, time to take this thing apart. Being in the air means his thunder attacks are more likely to hit, so the ground it is. Switch to the arm cannon… and fire! It’s a solid hit as well… but he doesn’t look any worse for the wear. Let’s try that again, with more power. Another solid hit… and it doesn’t do anything again! Something’s wrong – and it’s here I remember that a large majority of the Pigmasks are also firing at Mr Genator, and have been doing so for some time, except they’re not doing any damage either. In fact, Mr Genator just takes the shots and fires an onslaught of thunderbolts back!

Wait. What if the laser shots are what is giving him his power? We keep feeding him energy, and he keeps retaliating with it! Yes, that makes sense – I don’t understand the details exactly, but the colonel mentioned that the generator was needed because Mr Genator will have to recharge after discharging large amounts of electricity. But he hasn’t recharged once – because we keep recharging him!

“Everyone, stop!” All the Pigmasks do so and look at me, while still dodging the occasional attacks Mr Genator throws out.

“That thing is absorbing all of our shots and using them to power itself! Colonel, that shield was a good idea, but it’s not standing against the electricity for whatever reason.”

“Why isn’t the shield working?” asks the colonel to the captains.

It’s a regular Pigmask who responds: “Oh! We based the electricity off our studies of fulgurkinesis from the Commander!”

“Which ignores any kind of protection or counters one puts in place.” Finishes a major.

“How very annoying.” The Pigmasks turn their attention to the colonel.

“What are your orders, ma’am?”

“What are your orders? What do you think, you morons? Think of a different way to hurt it!”

“Enough! We’re trying to destroy the giant robot that can kill us all, not each other.”

“You are the Commander. What are your orders, sir?” replies the colonel.

What are my orders? For all the high ranking this position has, I’ve done very little of what the title actually says – commanding. Let’s think. Any sort of energy based attack is a bad idea, for obvious reasons. Touching this thing when electrified is also a bad idea, for equally obvious reasons. So what if we cut the power?

“Majors, captains and colonel, bombs seem to be hurting it, so keep going with that. Everyone else, you’ve all had combat training, so attack it head on!”

“Sir! That thing’ll shock us if we so much as touch it!”

“So we wait. It’ll run out of electricity eventually and when it does, it’ll have to recharge. Then we strike.”

The next few minutes are spent playing a very dangerous game – baiting Mr Genator into discharging as much electricity as possible. He gets us a few times, but eventually he’s forced to take a break.

The 20 or so ordinary Pigmasks and I quickly seize the opportunity and start hacking away at whatever we can – until my scanners report something.

_‘Target recharging batteries and systems.’_

He’s repairing his systems with the generator as well! We’ll have to destroy the generator then.

“Bombers! He’s using the electricity to recharge his systems!”

“Oh yeah, I forgot we put that feature in! We really thought of everything!”

Yeah, except for a self destruct in case it backfired! Never mind…

“Destroy the generator then!”

“It’s no use Commander! This thing’s even tougher than Mr Genator!”

They really did think of everything. Okay, we need to expose the wires then.

“Bombers, destroy the metal pieces shielding the wires and then we’ll slash them to pieces!”

And for once, my plan actually works! The bombs do enough damage to the metal pieces that we’re able to force them out of the way and expose the wires, and finally destroy them. I take a lot of joy in slicing one of the larger wires. The other Pigmasks clean up any of the other wires I missed, and finally, Mr Genator falls.

Everyone takes a sigh of relief. Well, until...

“Yeah, so, I don’t think Mr Genator was working properly.”

There’s a lot of ‘Noooo, reaaaaally?’ flying around and the colonel bashes the offender with her gun. I somehow resist the urge to follow through with a bad idea by grabbing a piece of scrap metal, and start bashing him over the head with that.

Actually, that’s not such a bad idea. I look around the remains of Mr Genator and notice one particular piece of metal that’s straight and narrow. Not too big or heavy either. I take a few swings, and it feels comfortable. I think I’ve got myself a new weapon.

The maintenance and rebuilding of Mr Genator takes another week – and this time we include a remotely controlled shut down in case it malfunctions! If only they put that in before…

And to my shock and surprise, we don’t have a repeat of what happened before. Mr Genator greets us all politely, or to be more precise, by not immediately cascading thunderbolts down on us. How nice. The thing that scares me is that Mr Genator will be even more powerful in the Thunder Tower, as it’s connected to a more powerful generator. We’re thinking about giving it some weaknesses – in case something like this happens again. What we ended up doing was putting a limitation on how much electricity it can use – both to limit its power, and because an overuse of electricity could negatively effect the tower or overload Mr Genator.

We take a break for the next 2 days and I want to explore the Empre Porky Building – but unfortunately I can’t as some floors haven’t been constructed yet, which surprises me, as I thought this city had been here for a long time. Then again, I don’t think I ever heard about this city before that incident, so maybe it is newer than I think.

Instead, I head to Murasaki Forest to train a little and practice using this aluminium rod. The first subject, is a pig shaped flower.

_‘Name: Pigtunia’_

_‘A genetically modified flower that can reproduce very quickly. Their pollen is known to make people cry and their mouths allow them to drain psychic energy from a target. Danger level: low.’_

_‘Weakness: Being a flower, they are incapable of moving and are easily burnt or frozen.’_

The one element I have is the only one it isn’t weak too… still, being still makes it an easy target. I swing once with my new rod and I send it flying. Woah. That’s a bit too powerful, I should probably tone it down. The rest of the day is spent doing the same thing to other chimeras I can find, although I make sure not to seriously injure them.

The next day, I decide to focus more on the mental side of things and start reading _PSI and I._ It’s a good read so far, because they cover things in a lot of detail. The chapters on recovery PSI were interesting, and our mishap with Mr Genator definitely makes me hope I learn some.

Returning to the lab, we start building the maid, but not before I give the order for a name – who we decide to call, Li’l Miss Marshmallow. Somehow, somehow, that’s even worse than Mr Genator – because at least his name was a clever word play. This is just… I’d rather call it whatever its serial number was, if I could remember it.

Either way, the construction of Miss Marsh - that’s my nickname for her, goes rather smoothly, although saying that, the construction of Mr Genator also went smoothly and the results weren’t the best by any means. It only takes 2 weeks to finish constructing her – which leads us to activating her.

We’ve learned from Mr Genator and all the Pigmasks draw their guns preemptively. We’ve also got a crew of Claymen ready to help us if things don’t go our way.

“HELLO.”

The colonel replies, “Hello, who are you?”

“THE NAME WHICH I WAS GIVEN IS LI’L MISS MARSHMALLOW, SERIAL NUMBER: MROB-6720M.”

“What do you do?”

“I SERVE HIS HIGHNESS IN WHATEVER WAY HE REQUIRES. HOWEVER, I DO NOT SEE HIM, AND I HAVE NOT BEEN GIVEN ANY ORDERS BY HIM.”

“We’ll take you to him.”

“I CANNOT. MY PROGRAMMING FORBIDS ME FROM LISTENING TO ANY ORDERS THAT DO NOT COME FROM HIS HIGHNESS.”

The colonel takes a look at all the Pigmasks behind her. “Why do they always have to have such stubborn programming?!”

“Well, it is the king’s orders.”

The colonel sighs before continuing. “Can’t you trust us, we can take you to him.”

“THAT IS IRRELEVANT. MY PROGRAMMING FORBIDS ME FROM LISTENING TO ANY ORDERS THAT DO NOT COME FROM HIS HIGHNESS.”

The colonel and robot spend a good few minutes going back and forth like this, until eventually she snaps. Both of them snap.

“Right! I’ve had enough of this! Where is that shut down switch?”

“DANGER! DANGER!”

Miss Marsh sounds rather ticked off now and out pops the claw and scissors. She chases the Colonel for a few minutes while everyone tries their best not to laugh.

They fail.

After some time, I decide to put the colonel out of her misery and hit the shut down switch, stopping Miss Marsh. The colonel gives us all a look of contempt before dismissing us all. Despite its reluctance to listen to anyone but Porky, I suppose that’s what we programmed it to do, so at least in that respect, it’s working.

There’s only one more week before the deadline so we spend it doing some more tests on Miss Marsh and Mr Genator. They go smoothly and with one day left, we decide to clean them – until one of the majors comes up with a ‘better’ idea.

We drag the two robots in the same room and activate both of them.

Miss Marsh speaks first: “LOOK AT ALL OF THIS FILTH ON YOU! I MUST CLEAN IT AT ONCE!”

Mr Genator isn’t exactly comfortable with that though: “GET OFF ME! CLEAR THE AREA!”

“BE QUIET! WITH ALL THIS FILTH, YOU WILL BE OF NO USE TO HIS HIGHNESS.”

That finally shuts him up – but it all it does to the Pigmasks is make them laugh even loader. Even the colonel joins in – I suppose it’s the relief of being finished with such a difficult project.

“…they’re acting like a married couple already!”

Do married couples really argue like that?

_‘This is the 21st time you’ve done this. 3 weeks and I’m keeping count. It’s only luck that I woke up this early to catch you.’_

_‘Hinawa, you shouldn’t be up so early. Go back to sleep.’_

_‘I could say the same to you. You’ve run yourself ragged these past few weeks with those sheep and chickens.’_

I suppose they might on occasion – after all, no one is perfect.

_‘I can’t. Someone’s gotta look after them. Besides, I don’t mind.’_

It can get heated at times.

_‘But I do. You’ve been getting up at the crack of dawn and you don’t return until late in the night! How much sleep are you getting? This can’t be healthy!.’_

And sometimes both sides have a point.

_‘I’m not getting enough sleep, I’ll admit. But if I don’t look after them, who will? How will we get wool for you to knit with? How will we get food? I have to do this for you and the kids.’_

_‘But you’re still working too hard! And speaking of the kids, they haven’t seen you for five days!’_

But they start to see reason.

_‘What? How can that be? I’ve always come back home.’_

_She’s on the verge of tears. ‘You leave so early. And then you come back so late. Even more so recently. Not even Claus could match your bad sleeping habits. And Lucas… he is our resident sleepyhead. You can’t even come with us to see my father next week because of the animals. I’m not saying you should stop work, but don’t overwork yourself like this. At least… spend some time with the kids before we go.’_

_‘Five days… I’m… sorry. I’ll wait for the kids to get up before I leave.’ _

_‘H_ave _something to eat as well – I know you’ve been skipping out on breakfast!’ Although she says it playfully, there’s a serious undertone to it._

_‘I never could hide anything from you.’ _

And eventually, that bond is renewed stronger than ever.

_‘Nope. But it’s one of the reasons, many reasons, that I love you. You raised the kids to be honest after all. I think a bit of everyone’s favourite food ought to help. Remind me, what do you like on your omelet?’ _

_‘You know exactly what I’ll say.’_

_‘I know, but I like hearing you say it.’_

_‘Lots of cheese.’ He says, with a roll of his eyes, and a smile plastered on his face._

_‘As always.’_

_She spends some time making the omelets, humming along. Meanwhile, he’s deep in thought. Until…_

_‘Hinawa?’ _

_‘Hm?’_

_‘I love you.’_

_‘I love you too.’_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas! Hope everyone's having a good time this holiday, even if you don't celebrate the festival in question. Thank you to all the people who have read this story and my present to you is this chapter! I'm really bad at this whole making a short chapter thing, and it's Christmas so... *sigh*. 
> 
> I'll admit - I'm not happy with how this chapter turned out. I don't know why either - it just feels a bit off.
> 
> So yeah, not much to say about this chapter, other than the memories Claus starts to have. I imagine that certain words, like 'mother', bring back these important memories (like battling random hippies, or universal cosmic destroyers... oh wait, wrong kind of mother), but they don't make much sense to Claus, because he doesn't fully remember or understand these memories. I actually quite enjoyed writing them - and once we get to the Seven Needles... well, I won't much more than that.
> 
> Also, not gonna lie, writing Flint and Hinawa gives me a real warm fuzzy. I might just do a bunch of random Flint and Hinawa one shots after this, because why not? And Flint/Hinawa is indisputably canon so I can’t get any flak for misrepresentation. 
> 
> I'm aware that Flint is never stated to look after chickens - but come on, think about the omelets. How does the family have omelets with no eggs? Rhetorical question - they can't! But now they can!
> 
> Next time, Claus gets a little reward for his efforts.


	9. Nowhere Islands

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claus gets his first vacation and decides to explore the Nowhere Islands - finding out what makes them so special, and meeting up with a familiar creature.

So after the robotic debacle, I was left a little bit confused as to what I’d be doing next. As it turns out, the answer was a vacation. Master Porky was kind enough to give me a week to do whatever I wanted! He said I could go anywhere I wanted, provided it wasn’t anywhere near Tazmily or off the Nowhere Islands. Mind you, that second stipulation doesn’t really mean much, because the only other piece of land nearby is Tanetane Island, which is rather dangerous – there are a number of strange mushrooms which cause all sorts of odd effects. 

Still, I’m curious about are the places that Porky used to live in. Onett was his hometown apparently, yet there’s no land in sight. He is incredibly old though, so it’s probably gone. But the land it was built on should remain though – but again, there’s no land at all. I’ve heard some of the Pigmasks say that a great calamity hit the planet – destroying everything. Except the Nowhere Islands – hence their name.

I’ll need to do some research into this at a different point in time. I would get a book from the Chimera Laboratory, but I don’t feel comfortable getting more books when I’ve already taken two. Speaking of research, I should get back to reading PSI and I.

I spend the first three days exploring the island, going to three different mountains. First up, a snowy peak to the west of New Pork City. It’s an eternal winter here, but the wildlife don’t let up. Snowboarding yetis occasionally attack me as well as frozen dogs which use PK Freeze on me to great effect. Getting by isn’t all that easy. Eventually, I’m forced to give up – the winds just keep blowing me back and I didn’t bring any warm clothing. I really wanted to make it to the top, but it’s not worth my life.

Next is the exact opposite – further west is a strange valley near an volcano. I decide to explore the valley and what I find makes me my description of ‘strange’ into ‘nonsensical’. The reason why? I find a group of strange creatures, which have huge noses, a single hair with a red bow and really like the words ‘boing’ and ‘zoom’. If I’m not mistaken, these are Mr Saturn! They have to be – the resemblance to the ones in ‘Earthbound’ is too uncanny for it to be mere coincidence!

So how are they alive? Assuming this great calamity actually did happen, the place where all the Mr Saturn lived should be destroyed – and they should be dead. Unless, some lived here naturally – but that seems like quite the coincidence. The valley is familiar to the other Saturn Valley, but not exactly the same – the volcano is the biggest difference, along with a lack of a Sanctuary.

I ask for their names and they say they don’t have any… except for Mr Saturn. So they’re definitely the same creatures then.

These creatures are oddly nice (literally, as they’re kind in their odd way). Porky said that Mr Saturn in his time were odd creatures which were good natured but easily manipulated… I wonder what he meant by that. Actually, now that I think about, Dr Andonuts would know about the Mr Saturn as he came from the same time period. Mental note: ask him about this when I get back. 

The third day, I decide to go somewhere special – Drago Plateau. The place where it all began. There’s two things to note. Firstly, I officially hate trees! It’s not that I don’t care about the environment or nature, but these god forsaken trees tried to kill me! And here’s the kicker – when I think I’ve got them on the ropes, they spontaneously combust into flames, and that obviously really hurts! How does a tree just explode?!

On a more serious note, it’s here I see the remains of the Drago that I think attacked me. I see some blood on the ground as well as a piece of its hide. I’m not sure what to make of all this. Should I be angry for this attacking me? Or should I be happy that it unwittingly saved me? 

Wait. I hear footsteps – footsteps of a human. Oh no, is this someone from the village? Okay, no time to think about that – hide! I hide behind the nearest rocks. My suspicions are correct – it is a human, and I imagine someone from the village. He’s wearing clothes that makes him seem like a cowboy. He looks familiar somehow. 

“… god forsaken trees…how do trees of all things explode…”

Well, it’s nice to know that someone agrees with me. But more importantly, how did he get past said god forsaken trees? This guy must be really strong - I’ve got these enhancements after all, and I struggled to get past them. Best to stay out of his way then – besides, it wouldn’t do well for someone of Tazmily to see me.

“… come back to me! Claus!”

Claus? Why… is that so… familiar? Maybe it’s a kid I knew when I lived in Tazmily? Yeah, that must be it. Evidently, this Claus is missing, and this guy here is looking for him. But this place is rather dangerous – why would this man be searching here for Claus? Assuming Claus is a child, and although I don’t know why, something tells me he is a child, he would have an awful lot of trouble making his way up here.

Claus… it’s familiar. I feel incredibly sorry for him. Did his child run away? If so, this seems like the last place that any child would want to go.

Claus…. Claus…. Claus… why can’t I… he’s someone special… not to just to this man… but to me. I know it… but I can’t remember.

He continues this for two hours. Two hours of searching for Claus. He certainly is determined, I’ll give him that. It’s heartwarming actually, to see someone from Tazmily genuinely care about another.

“…I’m an idiot, they say, you have to be dead, they say. But you’re not gone. I know it. You did this all for your mother. You’re out there, I’m sure, scared of returning. Please, Claus. I can’t lose you! Lucas can’t… Hinawa… I’m a terrible father.”

He breaks down crying… he sits there weeping silently. I don’t know him… not at all.

But… I feel connected to him. A bond deeper than anything I felt before.

Hinawa… Lucas… more names I don’t know. But names I’m connected to nonetheless. 

Family… family… he knows my pain. But his is… worse. I had the luxury of forgetting the pain my own family caused. Betrayal. But he had it worse… he had people to cherish… people who cherished him…

And it’s all gone. A void of nothingness within… while everyone else lives ignorantly by, not a care in the world.

I’ve never realised it but for how kind everyone’s been to me, there’s always been something missing.

Love. 

I understand why it was done, but I never got a family. I’m a child, all alone. Like Master Porky, just like Porky, I’m lost. We’re both children who’ll never get the guidance we need. We never received love.

“Another day gone. But I’ll be back tomorrow, and the day after, searching for you, like I’ve always been doing. After all, there’s nothing more important than family.”

And the love that they give you. 

I can’t cry… but I want to… I want to cry… let me… let me cry!

But like before, I can’t. I’ve got to stay strong. 

Claus… whoever you are… you’re a lucky child. Please, return to those who love you.

Once the man leaves, I decide to finally come out of hiding and go back home.

Despite all I’ve heard, I suppose there is some good in Tazmily after all.

While I do so, I decide to go higher than I usually do, so I can see all the Nowhere Islands. It’s beautiful. I can see the snowy mountain I tried to climb, the strange valley where the Mr Saturn live and the construction of the Thunder Tower. I can even see a sunflower field that looks really peaceful. But most interestingly of all, when this high, the island looks like a creature… a dragon?

It can’t be coincidence that this island is shaped like a dragon, can it? It’s the only island left on the world and it forms a dragon? The mystery grows deeper…

I head to Chimera Laboratory again and go to see Dr Andonuts, apparently working on some sort of construction chimera, based off a gorilla.

I head to his room and enter, after knocking of course.

Sure enough, the room he’s in has a gorilla with armour and a large steel ball that I imagine would be very effective at pummelling things. If you ask me, this construction chimera looks more like a destruction chimera!

“Dr Andonuts, it’s good to see you again. Is this the construction chimera I’ve heard about?”

“Quite the opposite. Part of this Laboratory isn’t quite up to scratch, so we need to replace it. This chimera here will be responsible for ‘clearing the area, shall we say.”

“Which is a fancy way of saying turning it into rubble.”

“Indeed. I suppose you’re here for a check up?”

The check up goes smoothly. Everything is working perfectly fine and I get some more fuel, but that’s not what I came in for. Afterwards, I begin my interrogation.

“Dr Andonuts, you’ve worked on many creatures, haven’t you?”

“I have, although I can’t say I’ve enjoyed it all.”

“Have you ever heard of, or come across a group of creatures known as the Mr Saturn?”

His eyes immediately widen to the size of a… I’m not good at analogies at all actually, but point is, he knows exactly who they are, and very well by the look of things.

“How… how do you know them?”

“You first.”

“Very well. In my time, the Mr Saturn lived in a very remote area, known as the Saturn Valley. Peculiar creatures to say the least, but their technological prowess cannot be understated. It was thanks to them that I was able to realise time travel. With further help from them, I might have even perfected it. Frankly, I must wonder if they even come from this planet. But this island is the only thing left so I suppose they must all be extinct. Which brings me to my question, how do you know about them? How do you know that I know about them?”

Yes, his description of the Mr Saturn lines up with mine – although I wasn’t aware that they were so smart. Now I think about, their ‘houses’ were like the pig shaped pods the Pigmasks use for transport. I wonder if their houses serve as transportation then. Dr Andonuts isn’t lying, at least I don’t think, so I suppose I’ll give the same honesty.

“My answer to both questions is actually rather simple: Earthbound.”

“Ah. That wretched movie. I sincerely wish the king would stop playing but I suppose… never mind.”

“Do you not like it because it isn’t true?”

“You might say that.”

Once again, he’s become defensive. Time for a different angle.

“Actually, the reason I ask you all of this is because I’m confused.”

“Hm? Confused about what?”

“How far into the future have you gone?”

“I can’t be sure, but this is the only piece of land I hear, so it must have been thousands of years from where I have come.”

“Exactly. So considering this is the last piece of land left, considering many creatures undoubtedly being killed when the supposed cataclysm happened, despite all of that, I think you’ll understand my confusion that even though the Mr Saturn were located in only one area, they are still alive.”

“How can that be?!”

“Your guess is as good as mine. The Mr Saturn are alive, in a valley rather similar to their old one near a volcano.Quite the coincidence, wouldn’t you say?”

“A volcano you say… there’s only one on the island, Fire Mountain. So that’s where they are. Still, it’s hard to believe. They surely would have been killed.”

“They should have. Is it possible they migrated?”

“Their houses. It’s possible they may actually be spaceships and so they could use those. This is assuming a lot though. This calamity that is spoke of is rather unclear. No one on the island knows what it is, or how it happened. We don’t even know if it actually happened.”

“It must have. You and Master Porky both come from a time where places that once existed no longer do now. Onett, Twoson, Threed, Fourside, Summers, Winters. Scaraba, Daleem. Are any of these familiar?”

“All of them, and I don’t think I need to ask how you found out. Yes, you make a very convincing point. Something happened, yet no one can remember. No one knows.” 

“You couldn’t forget something like the end of the world though. Not by simply forgetting it anyway.”

“We don’t know how far into the future I am though. For instance, we could be 10,000 years into the future, and the cataclysm happened 9,000 years ago. The records and memories of such an event could be forever lost to time.”

“If we were that far into the future, wouldn’t things be more advanced?”

“It’s possible to go backwards. This calamity caused only a minuscule percentage of people to be left, and after something like that, wouldn’t you want to revert to something simpler? Even if that weren’t the case, resources would be limited on an island, even though it is a rather large one. Developing anything would be rather difficult. Still, we have no way of knowing when the calamity happened so none of this really matters. Time is, as always, our enemy.”

“So why not manipulate it?”

“What?”

“You can time travel. Find the cataclysm.”

“It’s not that simple though. Again, we don’t know how long ago this cataclysm happened. Trying to find the date, is like trying to look for one specific flower in a sunflower field. Secondly, my time travel is not perfect. I called my device the Phase Distorter, because it can distort you rather severely. Only inorganic things can survive the time travel. Anything living…let’s not go down that road.”

“What if I were to do it. I have this machinery, I could survive!”

“Oh no, you most certainly wouldn’t. Your machinery would – you are very much living though. Only a robot could survive it.”

“Why not use one of those then?”

“In all honestly, I’d never considered the idea of using time travel to pinpoint the calamity. But firstly, I don’t have access to a Phase Distorter. And even if I did, there’s still the issue with finding the exact date. I’m sorry to say it, but it’s a lost cause.”

Just when I thought I could get some answers, reality has to get in the way. Maybe not knowing is for the best though.

“I suppose you’re right. Thank you for your time either way.”

“You’re welcome. And thank you.”

“For what?”

“For the memories.”

“I never showed you any proof that I was telling the truth.”

“No, and perhaps this is illogical, but I believe you. Life often has a strange way of linking things together.”

  
The next 3 days are spent digesting the contents of my psychic guide, also known as my book. I wouldn’t mind a psychic guide now though given all the strange things I’ve found out.

Either way, it’s a rather interesting experience, reading in solitude. There’s a hot spring near the Chimera Laboratory, which always makes me feel relaxed and refreshed. Reading there alone always fills me with a certain sense of calm.

I don’t know why exactly, but the peace of nature often makes me wonder about the people of Tazmily. 

They must have this peace, every day, because they didn’t accept technology. This peace they feel… perhaps I’m thinking too much about it, but perhaps they knew. Technology has its advantages for us – after all, I wouldn’t be alive it weren’t for it. 

Yet, it can’t replicate some things. I was given a life and deprived one at the same time. Did they know? Are they fearful that their lives would be changed by technology? Perhaps they may see reason… but should they?

It doesn’t matter. Whether they chose to accept technology or not, it can’t excuse their actions. To hurt people like that… one day, they’ll pay. The only question is when.

My studies on PSI have yielded some interesting discoveries. For instance, PK Thunder ignores any sort of shields or counters one may put in place, which explains why the colonel’s shielding device failed to protect us against Mr Genator. I’ll have to remember that for future battles.

In general, the subject that interests me most is regarding the more powerful pieces of PSI. PK Starstorm is described as being incredibly powerful and the movie gave me a good indication of its destructive capabilities, which only makes me curious – how does someone manifest such a power with just their mind? Every time I use my powers, there’s a strain of sorts. Something pulling on my mind almost. It’s gentle now, but I imagine it would be more severe with more powerful PSI. Wouldn’t something as powerful as calling down fragments of stars destroy your mind? 

The other point of interest is the elusive and potentially mythical PK Love, a psychic attack fuelled by the namesake of the attack. The reason it interests me, is because there’s absolutely no information on it. The book states that no one has been recorded to use it and that only ‘the chosen ones’ can use it – and psychics themselves are already chosen ones.

Love… love… it all comes back to that. The emotion that governs us all and dictates our every move. That man searching for his child… love. But can I love? I have no one to love. Although I’d like to consider Master Porky a brother of sorts, I’m sure he doesn’t see me as the same. He’s been kind and generous, but he has no reason to see me as more than another subject.

He wanted me to become the Commander though. Me, the child who was found a few months ago, rather than any of the members of his army. I don’t think the Pigmasks even had a Commander though, although I suppose Fassad would come close. Still, I get the implication that Master Porky doesn’t trust Fassad – in fact, none of the Pigmasks like him. They mostly just tolerate him, because of… actually, why do they tolerate him?

See, Fassad’s always been rather creepy and boastful about his power, although to be fair, he is a powerful psychic. I suppose he’s useful enough to justify him having a role of power but Porky’s been looking for an opportunity to have him replaced.

Still, surely there are better choices than an child who was recently found. The Fierce Pork Trooper comes to mind - he’s strong, respected by many, and he’s been in the Pigmask Army for approximately 5 years, according to some of the Pigmasks.

I am none of those of things. Yet I am to be the Commander. Master Porky said I have a power unlike anyone else – but what is that power? What could I have that no one else could? 

He’s putting so much faith in me. 

So perhaps he does care about me… right?

Another day of reading and musing goes by and once again I go to the barracks to retire for the day. Tomorrow, I return to my training.

Everything goes black, as it usually does when I shut my systems down to rest. However, unlike all the other times I’ve done this, I maintain consciousness. I think. It’s like I’m floating in space. I feel alive, and yet very much dead at the same time.

Until it hits me – this is a dream. My first dream. I’ll admit, floating in space isn’t the most exciting thing my brain could come up with, but I’ll take what I can get. It’s strange though… I can hear voices. They’re all jumbled together so it’s hard to make sense of any of it. All sorts of different words, ‘you’, ‘find’, ‘alone’, ‘lost’, float around in a haze. But the one word that persists throughout is ‘waiting’.

In the darkness, all that I can do is focus on the voices one by one… slowly, they start combine together, into one coordinated voice, the voice of a young boy. A voice that feels so… familiar.

_‘I’m waiting for you. One day, I’ll find you. You’ll find me. We’ll find each other. Wherever you are, I’ll be waiting for you.’_

_‘After all, haven’t I waited for you before? When we got caught up in an argument over who was better at climbing, you left into the forest. I waited for you then. When you couldn’t swim as well as me, so I never swam in the ocean until you learned, because I wanted to share the experience with you! I waited for you then. When you left to avenge Mom, and told me to stay behind. I waited for you then.’_

_‘But that time you never came back. Why didn’t you let me come with you? You’ve always tried to protect me. But you couldn’t protect yourself.’_

_‘I should have come with you! I could have done something! Maybe I could have taken a hit or distracted it or… I was too scared. I should have come with you. You gave me a chance to run, and I took it. Dad says it was the right thing, but I know I was too hasty in my decision.’_

_‘You’ll…You’ll forgive your hasty brother, won’t you?’_

_‘Of course not. I wouldn’t blame you at all. I’m useless compared to you. Just a coddled crybaby. But I’m gonna change. I want to be strong, like you. When I find you, I’ll be different.’_

_‘I know I’ll find you. It doesn’t matter what everyone says to me. They say you’ll never come back just like Mom. But that isn’t true… is it? Are you truly gone?’_

_‘No. We never found you. Dad keeps looking for you each and everyday. I wish I could join him. Most of the time, I’m all alone.’_

_‘Please come back. Return to those who love you. I’m all alone… I’ve lost my mother… I may as well not have a father… and if you go, I’ve lost my brother... I’ll have lost my family.’_

_‘I always wait for you. I’ve always waited for you. And I’ll always keep waiting for you.’_

_‘I’ll never stop waiting for you.’_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First update for the New Year! Yay! Man, I started this in 2019 and now it’s 2020 - so does that mean I’ve writing this for over a year?
> 
> All time jokes aside, I’ve always been interested in the idea of the Nowhere Islands being the only place left - it’s a shame that the game didn’t really do much more with it. 
> 
> Also, also, having watched the new Star Wars movie, I just realised the number of similarities between Darth Vader and Claus. Let’s list them off:
> 
> 1\. They’re both characters who are related to the main protagonist and are considered dead.  
2\. Both of them end up becoming evil due to the death of a loved one (okay, Padme wasn’t dead at the time, but she was going to die, and we all know she was doomed by canon).  
3\. They both are cyborgs and wield a sword - like weapon (Vader has a lightsaber, Claus has his thunder sword).  
4\. They both have powers related to the mind (the Force and Psychokinesis).  
5\. Both of them are redeemed due to their love and are killed by lightning, and at the very end of the third instalment of a series.
> 
> So yeah. Next time, Claus returns to his training and gets to hang out with the Pigmasks at a certain event. Tonda Gossa!


	10. Concerting Issues

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claus celebrates his first year of being in the Pigmask Army - by seeing his favourite band.

So after my brief vacation, I return to, who'd have guessed it, more training! I can't say I'm enjoying myself though, since I've been leaving the facility either incredibly exhausted or unconscious. See, one 'interesting' thing the Fierce Pork Trooper has been making us do is pitting all fifteen Pigmasks who I train with against me. It's not easy – while I'm much stronger than one Pigmask, strength in numbers is something the Pigmasks have definitely learned to capitalise on.

During this first month, I'm not able too put up much of a fight against the Pigmasks. The Pigmasks have their guns to shoot me down no matter where I am. They also like to gang up on me and beat me down, until I can either roll away or force them off. Trying to pick them off one by one helps, but the Pigmasks are incredibly scared of me, and so they never attack me in groups less than 3. Somewhat ironically, that fear and the behaviour it provokes ends up being rather useful for them.

Over time though, I'm starting to gain more experience in battle and start to formulate better strategies. An important lesson I've learned, is when to take an offensive approach and when to switch to a more defensive approach. PK Thunder helps me a lot by giving me a long range attack, and because of the sheer numbers of Pigmasks I'm fighting, the accuracy of the attack isn't as much of a problem. My systems have also gotten used to my use of it and stop reporting danger messages.

Next month, I'm starting to gain some ground against the Pigmasks. I remember and utilise some of the Fierce Pork Trooper's brute force techniques – stiffening myself and blocking when I'm being attacked and swinging whenever the Pigmasks start to surround me.

By the third month, I seem to finally be getting somewhere. My losses are getting narrower and narrower, so success has to be close. During the last week of this month though, I seem to getting weaker. I feel feverish for some reason, and because of it, I can't cope with the Pigmasks at all. No medicine seems to work at all, so the Fierce Pork Trooper suggests that I take some time off training. But I've never been one to make rational decisions, so well...

I don't.

In hindsight, not the smartest idea. The Fierce Pork Trooper changes from suggesting me to take time off training to outright forcing me. And so I'm stuck in a bed, chained to it.

I mean that literally. The Pigmasks don't trust me to not try and get out of this bed and go back to training before recovering, which to be fair is justified. Doing dumb, dangerous and spontaneous things seems to be a common theme with me.

I feel like a flightless bird, being rooted to my bed like this. My systems also keep showing a bunch of messages – I ignore them because I can't be bothered to see what they'll say, it's probably just reports about a fever.

And then, one day, it goes away. It's so sudden that I wonder if something's still wrong with me. I was yesterday and now I'm suddenly better? That doesn't seem right. But no, the doctors (medical ones) say I'm fine, and Dr Andonuts says nothing's wrong with my systems.

_I decide to check my systems myself, and that's when I see the large amount of messages that I've missed. Most of them are indeed a generic fever message but the last one in particular stands out._

_'New PSI energy detected. User advised to test with caution.'_

_New PSI? When did that happen? This message appeared today, it appears... when my fever went away. Are the two connected? Let's see if PSI and I has an answer. Ah, here we are!_

_'Chapter 10: Learning New PSI.'_

_Most of this seems to relate to teaching PSI, but that doesn't apply to me because I haven't had any lessons on learning new PSI. But, there is a subsection related to alternative methods of learning._

_'While PSI can be taught, a psychic who gains enough power or experience with a psychic technique they already have can manifest a new PSI ability without needing to be taught. They will often experience a fever and feel weaker during the time those new powers start to manifest due to the adjustments the body needs to make to cope with this new power._

_The severity of the fever is linked with the type and power of the PSI leaned – Lifeup Beta will cause a fever worse than Lifeup Alpha, but as an offensive PSI ability, PK Fire Alpha is likely to cause a worse fever than Lifeup Alpha. Generally, restorative PSI will yield the mildest fevers, while offensive PSI is likely to result in more severe fevers, with assist PSI falling in between, assuming the tier being compared remains the same._

_This fever cannot be cured by any means, even by using PK Healing, hence it is dubbed a psychic fever. Once the fever disappears, they will have gained the new ability. Some techniques are hard to learn this way, such as PK Starstorm, which generally must be taught, and the elusive PK Love, which only certain psychics can learn (assuming it exists), with the process as to how they learn it being unclear, due to the lack of a recorded use of this ability.'_

Somewhat lengthy, but I think I get the main gist – these psychic fevers give me new PSI techniques when I become more powerful. But the question is, what did I learn? It's quite peculiar, but I feel like I'm being told by myself. And it's something very useful.

  
The next battle with the Pigmasks goes better – because I use my new ability, Defense Down Alpha. It does exactly what it sounds, and by using it against each Pigmask, one by one, it gives helps me stand a better chance.

The Pigmasks panic when I use it, realising that they're in for more pain, which they're obviously not fans of. Their extra panic makes it easier to separate one from another, which is good because Defense Down Alpha only works on one person at a time, and using it multiple times quickly would exhaust me equally quickly.

Using my wings, I lift the Pigmasks up, one by one, before throwing them at the ground or walls as hard as I can. It's a tad brutal, I'll admit, but certainly effective, as the Pigmasks I throw sometimes hit their allies by rebounding off the walls, further increasing the pain output.

Actually, this gives me an idea. I'm remember one day, Master Porky and I decided to go to a place in New Pork City where there's a game called bowling. You roll a ball and try to hit as many of the 10 white skittles as you can. I remember it was quite fun actually, although Porky has to use a ramp of sorts to give his balls the energy needed to make it to the skittles. I would call it cheating, but owing to his the state of his physical health, I'd say it's justified.

Mind you, Porky still won so... nevertheless, this bowling game could be replicated right here. I find a Pigmask and take hold of him. They're squealing in sheer terror. I see a group of Pigmasks charging at me to free their comrade. Ready, aim, and throw!

"Strike!"   
  


The Pigmasks fly in different directions from the improvised bowling ball. I notice the Fierce Pork Trooper looking at me, barely stifling a laugh.

The surrounding Pigmasks all rush towards me, trying to kick me, but a simple swing knocks them away. Unfortunately, I don't notice one of them sneaking behind me until it's too late – suddenly, I'm in the air, and he decides to replicate my stunt, only with the roles reversed. He throws me with considerable force at the wall and I can feel the metal crashing against it.

_'Large impact to back! Damage to wings has been sustained! Beginning repairs.'_

Great. I think I could still use my wings, but with the damage they just received, it wouldn't be particularly wise. The Pigmask that throw me gives a squeal of joy.

"Spare!"

One of the other Pigmasks are quick to correct him. "You idiot! There were no pins! And you only rolled one ball!"

"It's a joke!"

"It's a bad one then!" Another interjects.

While they're all arguing about the semantics of bowling, I decide now's a good time to let loose. I've been getting much better at using my arm cannon now, so I simply charge and fire at the crowd that has formed.

The impact is glorious accompanied with their squeals. When the dust clears, nine of them are knocked out, while the other six are rushing towards me. They're very quick as well – by the time I notice them, they've pinned me down in such a way that I can't swing at them to get them off.

Four of the Pigmasks have pinned each of my appendages down while the other two proceed to simply kick my face in – and they don't exactly give me a tap to the head.

Despite all the things I have, a helmet is the one thing that would actually be of use right now. Let's think, I'm incapable of moving, so I can't use my stick or my arm cannon. My wings are damaged so flying out of here isn't an option. But I can still use my mind. Reducing their defences isn't going to do much when I can't hurt them.

As for PK Thunder... that only hurts one person at a time, and even if I knock one of me, they'll just get back up. I need a way to strike all six at once. A way to conduct the electricity through all of them.

Oh.

It's crazy and risky, yet it might work.

I try PK Thunder Alpha, aiming it onto the most unexpected target – myself.   
  


_'Danger! High electrical charge flowing through! Arm cannon temporarily disabled from overload!'_

These messages can be both a blessing and a curse. They can be legitimately useful at times, like when they told me I had new PSI, which I doubt I would have discovered otherwise.

On the other hand, they can be pretty redundant at times, such as when they're telling me that I'm being hit by electricity, while I can feel the electricity myself.

Numb... so numb...  
  


My lightning is really powerful – I never noticed how powerful until, well, I ended up using it on myself. I can only wonder how powerful the higher tiers will be.

Thankfully, my plan goes as expected – as all the Pigmasks are touching some part of me, they too get dealt a shocking ultimatum - let me go or be electrocuted.

I'm still feeling somewhat numb, but I can't let that stop me. I quickly start swinging at the Pigmasks before they can get up and pin me down, with as much energy as I can muster.

"Ah... kid?"

I notice one of them start to get up. Not so fast. I give him a good smash with my stick and he goes back down.

"Kid, you've done enough."

I keep beating on them all until they're all bloody...bloody – and that's when I finally hear the Fierce Pork Trooper.

"KID!"

I stop.

"I don't think they're getting up anytime soon. You can stop."

Have I done it? I have! I've finally defeated all fifteen Pigmasks!

And once the euphoria goes, that's when I realise that I might have overdone it with those last few Pigmasks.

"Will they be alright?"

"With time. You gave them all quite the beating so they'll need some time to recover. Still, congratulations on beating them all. I thought it take you another month or so!"

"I probably would have if it weren't for the new PSI I learned.”

"So that's what that weird blue aura was around some of them. I'd call it cheating but, win by any means, I suppose."

"What now then?"

"Owing to the fact that you've knocked out all fifteen of my soldiers, there's not really much more to do. You're free to go for the rest of the day."

Nice! I leave as quickly as I can – but evidently not quickly as I can, because who should I run into but a man with a recently groomed moustache?

Fassad. Pork, I hate this guy.

"Nwehehehe! Hello there, my little chimera. How are we today?"

"Fine." I try to keep my answers as short as possible so I can get away as soon as possible. Fassad isn't so keen to let me go though.

"Not feeling chatty today, are we? It's a special occasion though."

Special occasion? What does he mean? Unless he means me beating all the Pigmasks?

"Exactly. You've left here in a rather bloody fashion every single day up until now. It's good to see you're getting stronger."

How did he know that's what I was thinking?! Can he read minds? That fills me with more unease than I'm willing to admit, especially to Fassad.

He puts one of his hands on my head. I try to move away but I feel rooted to the ground.

"Nwehehehe! And it looks like you've gained a new piece of PSI as well! How interesting."

I want nothing more than for him to get off me. Unfortunately, he seems content to just stay there with what feels like an eternity.

"Well, I've wasted enough time here."

He leaves down the corridor, eating a banana as he goes. Every time I see Fassad, I always leave feeling thoroughly scared. I try to shake of the feeling and leave.

By the next day, all the Pigmasks have recovered – thanks to Instant Revitalising Devices! I also decide to spend some time in one to heal my own injuries, which weren't as severe as the Pigmasks, although still noticeable.

We're back to the standard training now. I attempt to make amends with the Pigmasks, only to find them rejecting my attempts. To my surprise, they don't want an apology because I was supposed to beat them, and they don't resent me at all for doing so. I'll admit that I'm quite surprised - it's rare to seem someone pleased that you beat them into bloody submission!

But that's not the only surprising thing to happen this week - the Fierce Pork Trooper has an announcement at lunch.

"All right everybody, I've got special news! We've been training for a very long time. But this week marks a very special week."

He pauses for a split second, looking at me, before continuing.

"As of this week, you've been training with us for a year."

"A year? It's been that long already? It felt like nothing at all!"  
  


"Yep, you've been in this army for a year. And so to celebrate, we're all going to Club Titiboo to see the DCMC!"

There's an eruption of cheers among the Pigmasks – but as always, I'm out of the loop. What is Club Titiboo?

"We leave at 4pm sharp!"  
  


We return to the training areas and I take the time to make my inquiry to the Fierce Pork Trooper.

"Ha. Club Titiboo is where the DCMC play their concerts. To get there, you need to take the Ropeway. It's near the Chimera Laboratory, you must've seen it."

"Yes, I have – on my trips to the Chimera Laboratory, I noticed a gondola of sorts. I attempted to ride it, but to little avail. Apparently, you require a ticket, which I don't have."

"Hm. That's a bit of a problem. Ah! If you go to the Clayman Factory – it's just south of the Ropeway, they'll give you a ticket. Go now and be back before 4!"

It's 12:30 now. And it'll likely take 15 minutes both ways - which gives me plenty of time. I take my leave, heading to the factory. When I enter, I notice a captain there.

"Commander! What brings you here to this factory?"

"I wish to obtain a ticket to the Ropeway. I've heard I can get one here."

"Oh! We normally only give them to the employees here but I'm sure I can make an exception for you!"

Nice! I can get that ticket and head back to my training! Though... they're only giving it to me because I'm the Commander... why... why does this bother me?

_"Hey, Dad! Dad!"_

_"Calm down, calm down! What is it?"_

_"Can I have that?"_

It's because nothing in life comes so easily.

_"A shirt? I suppose it suits you. Yellow and blue."_

_"Yeah! So can I have it?"_

_"How much do you want that shirt?"_

No matter how much you may want it.

_"More than anything in the whole entire world!"_

_"Well then, would it really be special if I just gave it to you?"_

_"Huh?"_

_"If you want to get something in life..."_

"...you have to work for it."

"Huh? Commander?"

"Apologies, I was momentarily distracted. I will not take a ticket merely because I am the Commander. I wish to earn it like everyone else. What job may I do?"

"Um... well then... um... we have some Clayman down below which have run out of power. If you can get them to a recharge point, that'll be a great help!"

The room north has a few Pigmasks working on inactive Clayman. They're using electricity to reactivate them. Apparently, Clayman are made by giving an electric shock to clay, which causes it come to life. A strange process to say the least, but it allows for the creation of a potentially infinite army.

The room further north has some creatures working to power the factory and an elevator leading to a mine, where a number of Claymen are working, along with some Pigmasks.

"Commander! Why are you here?"

"I am here to help retrieve inactive Claymen."

"In that case, all you need to do is get them to me and I can take them up this elevator. Then get them to the recharge up above."

The afternoon is spent doing the same thing: finding inactive Claymen, moving them to the elevator, having the Pigmask situated at the lift take them up, moving them to the recharge point and having the workers there recharge the lump of clay. It's a monotonous task, to be frank.

Still, I find it awfully hard to concentrate, because of all the anticipation for the concert. I've never been to one before, and I wonder if I'll like it. I think I will – after all, I do like the DCMC's music.

The other reason why I'm in anticipation is because I'm interested to meet the members. See, all the members of the DCMC are people who lost their memory. Just like me. But even then, they managed to find a purpose in life.

Which is where the similarities between them and me end. I honestly don't know what I want to do in life. The path I'm going down now will lead me to becoming the Commander, but it's not the same - it's not like I chose this path, rather I was chosen to go down it.

And parts of me wonder – should I become the Commander? There's the issue with whether I'm really suitable enough for it, but after all the progress I've made with my training, I actually feel confident that with time, say one or two years, I'll certainly be strong enough.

No, what I'm more worried about is whether I have the personality needed. A Commander needs to be able to order his troops as needed. A Commander needs to be able to fight with no mercy. A Commander needs to make cold and carefully calculated decisions, with no hesitation.

Am I that person? No.

Do I want to be that person? I... don't know.

Like many things in life, I don't know. I suppose for now all I can do is keep going.

At 3:00, I finish moving the 36th Clayman up. The workers there seemed swamped with all the Claymen I've brought.

"Here, allow me. PK Thunder!"

Lightning strikes the nearest Clayman, recharging it. It springs to life and rushes off. I lend a hand with the rest of them before leaving.

"I'm afraid I can't assist you any longer. Have I done enough work to warrant a ticket?"

"I'm sure you have. Out of curiosity, how many Claymen did you move, Commander?"

"If I've counted correctly, 36."  
  


"36?! That's gotta be a record or something! Here's your ticket."

Taking my well earned ticket, I return to the training facility, taking a quick shower. My parts are impeccably water tight - it's only a risk for me to be fully submerged in water. I proceeding to the entrance, where some of the Pigmasks are who have shedded their usual attire in favour of more causal clothes- others have chosen to keep it on. The Fierce Pork Trooper is with them as well. He looks at me with pity.

"Yeah, so kid, I've got good news and bad news. Fassad pulled me out to tell me I can't take you to the concert. I tried to argue back but... that didn't exactly work out. But I said to him if we could ask the king, to which he reluctantly agreed. The king says you can go, which is the good news."

Thank goodness! I was worried there for a second, but Master Porky's kindness shines through again. But wait...

"What's the bad news then?"

He sighs. "It's a security risk you being out in the open like that. We can't risk you being recognised and so, you'll have to wear a disguise. Specifically, this."

He holds a white helmet – the one that the colonels wear. Ah.

"The rest of the set's on your bed. I'm sorry about it..."

"It's the best you could do. Thank you."

I change into the uniform, which is somewhat tight, but it still fits. To be honest, it feels kind of cool being disguised like this – I even have their signature cloak to complete the look!

We leave in two of those metallic pig – shaped pods, which gets us to the Ropeway rather quickly. Cramming into three seperate gondolas, we ride to the top, with us somehow not falling to our deaths.

The air feels thinner here, not so to the point where I can't breathe, but it shows how far up we are. A fall would... not be ideal. Still, the view is nice from up here. I can see the forest, Chimera Laboratory and the Thunder Tower, which is still being constructed. They've made remarkable progress with it though – all that's left is the roof.

To the left is the main attraction – Club Titiboo. I wonder who came up with that name. Disco lights illuminate the area, with music blaring into the air. There are two guards on the outside – upon seeing them, the Fierce Pork Trooper pauses briefly.

"No way... it can't be..."

He has a look of disbelief on his face. For a moment, I'm worried that we may not be let in – now that I think about it, it would make sense for there to be some sort of age restriction on who can enter. This disguise may conceals me, but it doesn't do a thing for height, and I'm visibly shorter than everyone else here. I'm probably too young, being only... yeah, of course I don't remember my age. I'd say 13 then.

However, upon seeing us, they greet us, or more specifically, they greet the Fierce Pork Trooper warmly. The one to the left approaches first.

"Hey, it's the president himself!"

"Groovy, Keyboar! I can't believe it! When did you guys start?"

"A few months ago, when the construction of the Thunder Tower started. Some of the old guards took off to help with the construction and join the army..." replies Keyboar.

Groovy interrupts him with excitement. "So we scored some jobs here, where our favourite band plays all day and night! Sweet deal, right?"

"Yeah! It's great to see you both again, here of all places!"

"Never mind us. How are you doing? You're looking rather... gorgeous."

Keyboar barely holds a snicker at this. So do I. I notice none of the other Pigmasks reacted at all to this. I assume they're aren't aware of the Fierce Pork Trooper's name.

The Fierce Pork Trooper himself though currently shows why exactly he's called that – because the look he has on his face right now practically screams bloody murder.

"Why are you my friends again?"

"Because we all love DCMC."

"And why am I not throwing you into a wall?"

"Because... you... love us very much?"

"...Fair enough. So, I'll see you guys after the concert then!"

"See ya!"

So after that 'emotional' reunion, we finally enter... to see the place completely packed. Loads of Pigmasks fill the area, although I notice a few humans, who I presume are from Tazmily. How did they get a ticket for the Ropeway? Although, some may also be off duty Pigmasks as well.

I'm not claustrophobic, but with so many people in the area, it's hard to move or do anything really.

That's not why I feel uncomfortable though – no, my mind is... tensing up? It feels like there's a pull on it, like when I'm using PSI. The thing is, I'm not, so why is this happening? Maybe it's just the heat. Or the masses of people in here.

Thankfully, being the president of the largest DCMC fan club evidently has its benefits, as one of the employees notices us and motions for us to follow her into the concert hall. We seat ourselves at the front, on some rather nice couches. The Pigmasks are chatting amongst themselves about the best band member (even though it's obviously Lucky). There's some discussion about his fashion.

"I think, that's he's actually got a wig."

Now, at first glance, that seems to be an astute observation. However, take one glance at Lucky and even the densest of people could tell you it's a wig. Case in point? The Pigmasks figured it out.

"No way! Have you seen that afro? There's no way it's a wig!"

Or maybe they're even denser than I thought. My bad.

The Fierce Pork Trooper has is meanwhile engrossed in a DCMC pamphlet – so engrossed that he doesn't notice the Pigmasks who have decided to play a game in front of his face involving a strange gesture with their hands. They clamp their hands into a fist, open it out flat, make a v shape with their second and third fingers before finally making one of the previous three gestures. And one of them randomly wins.

How strange.

It's not too long before the droves of people start to pour in behind us – but despite all that, there's only one person I'm focused on. The one heading towards us.

It's a girl, taller than me, but fairly small in comparison to the Fierce Pork Trooper. To be fair, everyone looks small in comparison to the Fierce Pork Trooper.

It's then that I start to notice my headache again. Only this time it's stronger, stronger when I look at the girl in particular. Do I recognise her? From the village?

No... for some reason I don't recognise her in the same way that I did for that man I saw on the mountain... or that boy... Claus, wasn't it?

"Sir. Sir!"

I realise that the girl is calling for me. This is what happens when you get lost in thoughts like this.

"What would you like to drink?"

Drink? I'm not sure if I should stick to something simple or go more exotic. Then again, which these parts... best to stay simple.

"I'll just take some water. Please."  
  


"You want... water?"

The Fierce Pork Trooper starts laughing at this point.

"What? Who gets water in a place like this?! On your anniversary as well? Haha, Violet, get this man a Big City Cola!"

The girl, Violet, runs off this point to get the drinks.

"Come on kid, learn to live a little! It is your special day!"

In my defense, I don't know how my body would deal with cola, what with all my enhancements. And, it's a little hard to live when you've only spent a year back from the dead. I suppose he has a point though - I can afford to let loose a little on my anniversary.

Violet returns with our drinks, and I try my cola. It's not bad. A little bit too sweet but good nonetheless. She stays for a bit to talk with some of the Pigmasks.

Now that I think about it, she bears some similarities to that girl I saw in one of Po... Master Porky's videos. The one with a pink haired girl and a monkey being aided by a young boy on a Drago. Although, the resemblance is only because of her hair, which is also pink. The girl in the video was far more masculine in appearance, while Violet is decidedly not.

Besides, the pink hair could just be dyed. Then again, pink hair could be natural.

But then again... there is Fassad. He had some pink hair. Mostly brown, but some pink as well. Considering that, it seems illogical that he's dye his hair pink, and instead dyed it brown. It seems more likely that since a relatively small proportion of hair is pink, his hair is naturally pink and he dyed it brown, and he missed a bit off it. So is pink hair natural then?

I'm thinking about this far too much... and there's a far better way to see if Violet is a familiar face.

I focus my mechanical eye on her. It's a bit difficult with this mask on, but I manage. Scan and...

_No matches found._

What? No matches? Well... that's somewhat disconcerting. And it throws a wrench in that plan.

Who are you? Really, the smart thing to do would be to drop the matter all together and I imagine most people that get to this stage probably would.

But I'm stubborn and common sense isn't exactly something I have, given the fact that I attempted to fight a Mecha-Drago instead of doing the smart thing – running away.

That headache is only getting worse and worse the more I focus more on that girl. Okay, let's take a few steps back and actually try and use some common sense here.

The pull I feel on my mind now is similar to when I use PSI. The logical conclusion to be made therefore, is that I'm using PSI. But I'm obviously not. So what is it then...

PSI. But... not mine. Similar... yet different.

I wonder... my systems can detect for PSI, given that I kept getting notifications about my own. So would this work?

_Scanning surrounding areas for PSI._

_Scan complete._

I can see something similar to the thermal vision setting. Hues of blue fill my eyes. There's two places where I start to see warmer colours though. The first is on me.

The second is on Violet. Orange surrounds her. She's a psychic then, just like me. Only her powers are far greater. There's only green on me, with a few patches of yellow. With her, it's mostly yellow.

How powerful is she? More importantly, a psychic like this could be... dangerous to the Pigmasks. Some kinds of PSI are just devastating and a psychic with this level of power... I can't say it's a pleasant thought. It's not blood red, so I imagine she has not reached her full potential - but that's the issue. What threat would she pose at her full potential?

However... she hasn't done anything yet. Heck, she might not even know about those powers. I didn't, until I was told about them myself. I suppose I'll keep a note of this... in case. It's my anniversary, I shouldn't be working like this anyway.

Either way, there's not much time to dwell on the matter because a dimming of the lights indicates that the concert is about to start.

"Tonda Gossa! We're packed to the walls this evening, but we've still yet to raise the roof!"

There's an eruption of cheers at this.

The DCMC play a number of songs. They're all nice, although a bit loud, as obvious as that sounds. Still, it's enjoyable. One song is titled 'His Highness's Theme', and is apparently a tribute to Master Porky himself. It's an rendition of the Pigmask Army's anthem. I've gotta say, it sounds a lot different being played on actual instruments as opposed to the speakers on the pig shaped pods... which I must learn the name of because that's awkward to say.

There's a few encores of some of the songs, but after one and a half hours the concert ends. I suppose the fun ends and now we've gotta go.

Or so I think anyway. The Fierce Pork Trooper talks to some of the band members and before I know it, I'm in their band room!

Thankfully, there's a lot of space in this room – enough to fit all the Pigmasks and myself, although the Fierce Pork Trooper has left to talk to his friends.

It's... quite an experience to meet these stars. They're all very down to earth, and seem rather relaxed with life. Not a care in the world. I ask about they're memories, and like I've heard, all of them have lost their memories at this point, with Lucky being their newest member.

Lucky's quite a strange man. Up close, you can tell that afro's definitely fake, although he isn't bald under it like I thought. He has a gloomy feel, slightly bad breath and looks kind of like a bum. Most noticeably, he walks with a bit of a limp. It looks like his lower leg is paralysed.

"You've lost your memory too? Hey, you should join us!"

I politely decline, as I have never played an instrument. Maybe I should try and learn one, as difficult as it may be. Something like a sitar perhaps?

"Why did you join the DCMC?"

"Heh. Safety in numbers. But it felt like something was calling me. It feels like this is my purpose. I wasn't sure at first, but I went with it, and look where I am now. Is this the best thing I could have done with my life? Probably not. But I'm happy nonetheless. And that's all that matters."

Do what makes you happy... wise words to live by.

We spend a few more minutes discussing music with the DCMC, before leaving, as it is getting late.

The Fierce Pork Trooper is outside, still conversing with his friends. Sadly, we have to pull him away from them. They wish us all a safe travel back before we all cram ourselves into the Ropeway, followed by using the pig shaped pods to get back to the training facility.

When we get back to the training facility, it's still quite early - 6:27, but it has been a busy day. I make to go the barracks... but the Fierce Pork Trooper stops me.

"You're forgetting something."

What? Oh. I'm still wearing the uniform.

"Just put it in the locker rooms downstairs."

I go to the training facility and head downstairs - there's a few areas here, like the kitchen, some locker rooms, showers and even some areas to do laundry. I put the uniform in one of the locker rooms, intending to head back to the barracks and get some rest.

Of course, nothing ever goes according to plan. Guess who I meet? Fassad.

"Hello, my little chimera. Had a fun day, gallivanting with all your friends? I hate being overruled!"

You know, I've never tried just ignoring him. I walk on by as if I never saw him at all. Unfortunately, Fassad doesn't take too kindly to me doing so and outright blocks my passage.

"You will listen to me, chimera, when I'm speaking to you! Do not delude yourself into thinking you have any importance. That face of yours... I will crush it! All I need is the chance...

With that, Fassad takes his leave.

I hate Fassad. No, as in, genuinely hate him. The guy just plain freaks me out. Every single time I see him, he always refers to me as 'my little chimera'. It just makes... uncomfortable. As if I'm some... pet for him. I don't know. I just don't want to see the guy. Ever.

I return finally, intending to get some sleep, but when I enter the area I usually sleep in...

"SURPRISE!"

...I'm greeted with the Pigmasks and the Fierce Pork Trooper who have set up a party of sorts! It takes a few moments to adjust to all of this. When did they get the time to do all of this?!

Before I know it, everyone's partying here's lots of food, some music and best of all, no Fassad. Okay, let's not think about the creepy psychic. I decide to try some of the food - I don't need much, thanks to my systems. However, it is a special day so I decide to try some things out. There's nut bread, which has an interesting contrast of hard and soft. There are cookies, which are certainly tasty - although, perhaps too sweet. I can't exactly see them being very healthy, and it is important to maintain a healthy diet.

Most of the time, I just have this thick paste - it apparently has all the nutrients a person needs for the army, although its taste certainly leaves something to be desired. I don't think it's as bad as the rest of the Pigmasks insist but I'll certainly take this opportunity to have something with an actual flavour.

There's some of that Big City Cola as well as this pink liquid that seems similar to the stuff in the hot springs. I make to drink it, only for the Fierce Pork Trooper to stop me.

"Woah, kid! How old are you?"

Ah, again with the ages. "13,14, who knows?"

"Well, either way, I wouldn't have that if I were you."

"Why not? It looks fine."

"Oh it is. It is normally anyway, but I don't trust these guys to have... ah... spiked it, shall we say?"

Ah. Alcohol. The drink of death. I have no interest in having something which inhibits my abilities so I'll stay away from that...

Ah, but at least there's my favourite food here! Steak! The flavours are wonderful, the texture is great... like always... but... there's something strange. I usually like steak - and it still tastes nice, but despite all that... it just...

It doesn't feel right. It's... nice... but why... why don't I like it?

I think I've lost my appetite. After all, I did have those cookies, nut bread and cola. Combined with my already low energy requirements, it seems likely that I would simply not want any steak. That must be it. It's the most simple and logical explanation, therefore, it is likely to be the most accurate one. I'm taken out of my thoughts by the Fierce Pork Trooper, whose tapping a glass.

"Okay, everyone! It's a special day today! Ah kid, it's amazing. I know you're technically at an advantage compared to us all, with all your enhancements... so does that make you literally at an advantage technically? Either way, despite your advantages, I can't help but say that you've made remarkable progress. With another two years of work, give or take, I'd say you'd have all the training you need. So everyone, to the Commander!"

"TO THE COMMANDER!" They all start cheering so loud that one would be forgiven for assuming that the whole of New Pork City was cheering for me.

I just... I can't believe that they did all this just for me. I'm so... so grateful... no, don't... I can't cry... I can't cry...

Because there's no crying until the end.

With a great deal of effort, I manage to suppress my tears - it wouldn't do well for the Commander to show such an emotion. I must be... strong. I can't show weakness.

I decide to say some words of my own.

"I thank you all for the training you have provided me. While there was a great deal of my effort on my own part, you have all shown an equal amount of effort as well. I am honoured to have trained with you for this long. Thank you."

Not the greatest speech of all time, but the Pigmasks and the Fierce Pork Trooper all give me quite the cheer as well. Soon though, it is getting late and everyone retires for the day.

It's been a strange week. One day I'm getting demolished by fifteen Pigmasks and the next day, I'm demolishing them.

And then we all celebrate me being in their army for a year by going to a concert with a band consisting of five amnesiacs as if we're all friends, followed by them hosting a surprise party for me.

No... we are friends. It's nice. Really nice.

I feel more... confident now. I was worried about my skills, but talking to Lucky makes me feel much better.

And today... it's helped me see that, I have the support I need. I think I can do it. I know I can do it.

It's... it's nice to spend time with friends, isn't it?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m back! It’s been half a year since I last updated this and 3 months since I’ve done anything. Oh boy. So as an apology, here’s the longest chapter by far. You remember when I said Chapter 2 was a long one? Ah, how naive I was back then. I’ve also posted another fanfic here for FF4 which I think is almost as long (SHAMELESS PROMOTION).
> 
> For anyone wondering, the reason this took so long, was because I really did want to make this special - it is Claus’s anniversary. There were lots of things I wanted to put but had to scrap - most notably a flashback about Claus’s last meeting with Lucas. I liked the idea a lot and wondered what if it came from Lucas’s perspective... and so Sunflower Crowns was born! (MORE SHAMELESS PROMOTION).
> 
> Things to address then - starting with, the Pigmask Army's kindness. I like to think the Pigmasks aren't really evil, being either manipulated into being evil or outright mind controlled (I think it's implied to happen in the Chimera Laboratory in Chapter 7). They're just... misguided. I think the only real evil characters are Porky and Fassad.
> 
> Groovy and Keyboar are a reference to two members of the Runaway Five, keeping the theme with Gorgeous, while Claus’s comment about sitars refers to the fact that sitars (I think it’s a sitar) are Claus’s instrument played when he does a combo in battle. You’d be forgiven for forgetting this since you only control him for the very first battle.
> 
> For the ultimate example of incredibly subtle foreshadowing in video games, listen very closely to the sound effect Claus’s sitar makes and the sound effect played when the Masked Man ‘swings a sword’ in his first battle. That is genius.  
The other thing to mention is Kumatora/Violet - her disguise is a fairly easy one to see through so one must question how Claus who has a scanning mechanical eye would not get any matches since Kumatora would probably be on a wanted list or something (for you know, blowing up a tank). Seeing as no one sees through her disguise, I have to assume in universe, Kumatora is a really good with disguise since no one else recognises her, even though Club Titiboo is a place which Pigmasks frequently go to.
> 
> Finally, Claus’s PSI. Canonically, the only PSI that Claus/Masked Man can use is PK Love (or if you're an edge lord like me, PK Doomsday) - his intense bolt of lightning is never stated to be PK Thunder, and could be from the thunder sword - however since Claus uses it to tragic effect at the end of the game when he clearly is not holding his sword, I feel justified in assuming it's PK Thunder.
> 
> However, if Claus was a playable character (for more than a battle), I think he would have some buffing PSI (hence Defence Down), maybe Lifeup and Healing (the low levels though, like Kumatora) and for offensive PSI, he has PK Thunder and PK Love.
> 
> This has been incredibly long so with that, congrats for making it down here! I’m working on the next chapter now so hopefully it won’t talk nearly as long. 
> 
> Next time, Claus gets a bit of a change in his living space.


	11. Play Dates

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claus gets a new living space, learning some skills other than his combat ones.

It's been a few months since my anniversary and the concert at Club Titiboo - I don't have the best grasp of time but I think it's been a year and 4 months since I was resurrected and given my enhancements. My training is pretty much the same as usual - beat up Pigmasks, shoot things with my arm cannon and practice using PK Thunder - recently I've been trying to develop a different variation of PK Thunder.

Normally, I strike with lightning from the sky, and while it's certainly effective, the accuracy is a bit of an issue. I've been getting better, but I would prefer something more consistent. Hence, I have developed a variant which has me discharge the electricity in one quick beam. There's a trade off - it doesn't seem to be as powerful as the regular variation of PK Thunder. There's always a downside to every alternative, isn't there? Power over accuracy, speed over defence and being brought back as a cyborg or dying.

That last one may be too specific though.

Some interesting things have happened though: the most noticeable being my new living space. Pork...Master Porky, has kindly given me an area in the Empire Porky Building to make my own, so I'm going there now. It's a bittersweet moment in a way: I'm moving to an area to make new memories, but at the same time, I'm leaving the place I lived over a year. The place I have so many memories of. The place with my... friends.

But I'm still going to train with them thankfully. So, it's not farewell. It's just... moving on.

This afternoon, I'm taking one of those pig-shaped pods -apparently they do have a name, Porkships, named so to stick with the pig theme. Soon enough, I'm at New Pork City, and I get to enter the Empire Porky Building. I make my way to the 98th floor - where I'm supposed to have my own living quarters apparently. The idea is I'll be close to Master Porky, so I'll be able to reach him at a moment's notice, a reasonable enough suggestion.

It's a fairly simple trip, although I get some nostalgia when I pass the 57th floor - it's the one where I assisted with the construction of Mr Genator and Lil' Miss

Marshmallow.

With that, I quickly reach the 98th floor... which consists of a corridor with three doors - one on the left and right wall and a larger one on the wall opposite the elevator. And literally nothing else. It's spacious at least...

I head to the central door, since its size seems to indicate that someone important resides there - like Master Porky. I give a perfunctory knock and wait. No one answers. I try knocking again, but there's still no answer. The door is locked so I can't just simply enter. I can't just break down the door either, as I can tell it's made of an incredibly durable material. Not to mention, it would be rude. Now what?

"HIS HIGHNESS IS NOT HERE AT THE MOMENT, COMMANDER."

That voice... I pivot around, and as I thought, there is Lil' Miss Marshmallow. Or to me, Miss Marsh.

"Lil' Miss Marshmallow, I'm surprised to see you here. I thought you were supposed to be at the Thunder Tower. To guard Master Porky's room?"

"THAT IS CORRECT. HOWEVER, THE ROOM YOU SPEAK OF HAS NOT BEEN COMPLETED YET. THEREFORE, HIS HIGHNESS HAS GIVEN ME ORDERS TO BE HERE, SO I MAY ASSIST HIM IN HIS VARIOUS NEEDS. HIS HIGHNESS SENDS HIS REGRETS THAT HE COULD NOT BE HERE TO WELCOME YOU TO YOUR NEW RESIDENCE, HOWEVER HE IS CURRENTLY ENGAGED IN A MEETING WITH FASSAD."

A meeting with Fassad? What could it be about?

"What is this meeting about then?"

"I DO NOT KNOW. EVEN IF I DID SUCH INFORMATION WOULD BE CONFIDENTIAL, AND I WOULD LIKELY BE GIVEN ORDERS TO KEEP THAT INFORMATION SECRET."

"Even from me?"

"YES, EVEN FROM YOU, COMMANDER."

Interesting. In truth, I'm not really offended at the fact that Master Porky doesn't trust me with the contents of the meeting - the fact that I was told about the meeting shows he has a great deal of trust in me. Nevertheless, I can't help but be curious as to what this meeting is about. Maybe Fassad is being fired? That'd be nice.

"IN HIS ABSENCE, I AM HERE TO GIVE YOU A TOUR OF THE AREA. THIS ROOM AS YOU HAVE MOST LIKELY FIGURED OUT, IS HIS HIGHNESS'S THRONE ROOM. NO ONE IS ALLOWED IN HERE WITHOUT HIS PERMISSION. THE DOOR IS LOCKED, WITH THE ONLY KEYBELONGING TO HIS HIGHNESS."

"What exactly is inside the throne room?"

"MACHINERY REQUIRED TO SUSTAIN HIMSELF, AS WELL AS A VIDEO SCREEN HE USES TO COMMUNICATE WITH PEOPLE."

"So is he in there right now? Speaking to Fassad?"

"NO. WHILE HIS HIGHNESS DOES COMMUNICATE TO PEOPLE BY VIDEO, HE LIKES TO, IN HIS WORDS, 'SHAKE THINGS UP'. I ASSUME BY THIS HE MEANS THAT HE PREFERS SOME VARIETY IN HOW HE COMMUNICATES TO PEOPLE, BY SPEAKING TO THEM IN PERSON. ALTERNATIVELY, HIS HIGHNESS MAY WISH TO MEET FASSAD IN PERSON, OUT OF FEAR OF THE MEETING BEING INTERCEPTED BY THE ENEMY, IF IT WERE DONE BY VIDEO."

"But the people of Tazmily have limited technical prowess in comparison to us? Surely the chances of a meeting being intercepted are minimal, seeing as they would need to know the time of the meeting and have some way of intercepting this message?"

"INDEED. HOWEVER, HIS HIGHNESS HAS ALWAYS BEEN VERY PARANOID FOR REASONS THAT NO ONE MAY EVER KNOW. LET US MOVE ON. FOLLOW ME."

She moves to the door on the right wall before stopping and opening it, before the two of us move in.

"THIS, COMMANDER, IS YOUR ROOM. THE DOOR AT THE BACK LEADS TO A BATHROOM."

The room is a fairly modest one and there isn't very much in there. There's a bed for me to rest on, I assume, as well as an Instant Revitalising Device for me to recharge myself. There's a video screen as well, for communication I assume as well as a table and some shelves. Finally, the door Miss Marsh referred to which leads to the bathroom. Not much - but it is a place to call my own. I place the few things I have on the table – the books I've borrowed, my stick and some food.

It's here I notice that there's some machinery near the corner that looks as if it's meant to recharge something – but I don't really see the point of it, since the Instant Revitalising Device is more than sufficient to recharge me.

"The machines in the corner... what exactly is their purpose?"

"THEY ARE FOR ME. I AM REQUIRED TO USE THESE TO RECHARGE EVERY NIGHT."

"So, you would be here, with me, every night?"

"YES."

Oh. Okay. Wait, what? The two of us alone... every night... here. Alone. In my room. Alone. Why... why does this bother me?

"COMMANDER. YOUR HEART RATE HAS ELEVATED FROM 50 BEATS PER MINUTE TO 100 AND IS STILL RISING. I SUGGEST TAKING IN DEEP BREATHS."

Oh Pork, what is this? Wait. Okay. No, wait. Oh. Why... why do we share a room? And... and... why does she have a heart monitor installed in her? Okay, deep breathes. Deep breaths. Deeeep breeaaaths. Okay. Yeah. I'm okay.

"Why do you have a heart monitor?"

"AN ELEVATED HEART RATE MAY SIGNIFIES DISTRESSED EMOTIONS. HOWEVER, IT IS ALSO A SYMPTOM ASSOCIATED WITH THE EARLY STAGES OF HEART FAILURE. I AM REQUIRED TO MONITOR YOUR HEALTH AND CARE FOR YOU UNDER THE ORDERS I HAVE BEEN GIVEN, BY MONITORING YOUR CONDITION. AH. YOUR HEART RATE IS RETURNING BACK TO ITS NORMAL RANGE. GOOD."

Okay. Okay, good. Good. What was that? Never mind, let's just continue.

"THERE IS ONE MORE THING. HIS HIGHNESS HAS GIVEN YOU A... HOUSEWARMING GIFT, SO TO SPEAK. IT IS ON YOUR BED."

A gift? She's right, there's a present on my bed. When I open it, there's a stick inside that looks golden. There's also a note - it's a bit hard to read but I manage.

Hey, friend! I'm sure Marshmallow's already told you by the time you've read this, but I won't be able to see you today. It's a shame, I wanted to go to the arcade with you to celebrate. Unfortunately, I've gotta be a king.

You've been doing well so far, I hear, so here's a little present to help you forward. This is the best stick we could get you - I call it a Master Stick, cause I'm Master Porky! Good luck in all your training.

Master Porky

The stick feels like the perfect weight in my hand. It invokes some tense emotions in me... This was so kind of Master Porky! I really must thank him properly for this when I see him next!

"IS THE STICK TO YOUR SATISFACTION, COMMANDER?"

"Yes, it's very well made and a very nice gift for Master Porky to give me."

"HIS HIGHNESS DOES HAVE A KIND SIDE. ARE YOU READY TO MOVE ON?

"Yes."

"VERY WELL.THE LAST ROOM TO SHOW YOU IS THIS ONE."

She moves to the one opposite my room... or would it be our room? No, you know what, just my room. My room.

When we enter, it's pitch black and I can't see a thing.

"AH, YES. LET ME ACTIVATE MY LIGHTS."

I don't know what she means by that, but I find out very quickly – her eyes start glowing brightly, allowing me to see a little."

"FOR FUTURE REFERENCE, THE SWITCH IS ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE ROOM. HERE, I SHALL SHOW YOU."

Before I have a say in the matter, she takes my hand and leads me across the room. Despite being made of metal, her hand feels somewhat soft. It's warm as well. It's... pleasant, in a way. Not at all uncomfortable. It's actually... rather nice. When we reach the other side, she flicks the switch and the room lights up. I can see pots, pans, cupboards, a stove, an oven and a fridge.

"So this is the kitchen then?"

"INDEED. AND THE ROOM BACK THERE." She points to a door near the lights, "LEADS TO THE STORAGE ROOM. THIS CONCLUDES THE TOUR OF YOUR LIVING AREA, WHICH MEANS WE MOVE ON TO THE NEXT THING. YOUR LESSON."

My what?! My lesson?! Where did this come from?!

"My lesson? I don't quite follow."

"I SHALL EXPLAIN THEN. I AM RESPONSIBLE FOR MAKING FOOD FOR HIS HIGHNESS. HE DOES NOT TRUST ANYONE ELSE TO MAKE FOOD FOR HIM, OUT OF FEAR THAT THEY MAY ATTEMPT TO POISON HIS FOOD, HENCE WHY HE ONLY TRUSTS SOMETHING HE HAS PROGRAMMED TO NOT DISOBEY HIM."

"I see, but what does this have to do with me having a lesson?"

"AS YOU KNOW, I AM TO BE STATIONED AT THUNDER TOWER, WHERE I WILL GUARD HIS HIGHNESS'S ROOM. BUT THEN THERE WILL BE NO ONE TO MAKE FOOD FOR HIM AND HE NEEDS A REPLACEMENT HE CAN TRUST. HE BELIEVES YOU ARE THE MOST TRUSTWORTHY PERSON HERE."

Really? That's really nice to hear! Master Porky trusts me that much... I can't let him down then!

"HOWEVER, IT IS LIKELY THAT YOUR COOKING SKILLS ARE NOT COMPARABLE TO YOUR COMBAT SKILLS AT ALL. HENCE, I WILL BE TEACHING YOU HOW TO COOK THE DISHES HIS HIGHNESS IS MOST FOND OF."

Ouch. That hurts. She's right though – I wouldn't know the first thing about how to cook anything. I'd probably do something stupid like disintegrate the ingredients or burn some water!

"SO SHALL WE START THEN?"

"No time like the present. What are we starting with?"

"WE WILL START WITH TROUT YOGURT. IT IS A FAIRLY SIMPLE SNACK THAT HIS HIGHNESS LIKES TO HAVE ON OCCASION. TODAY, HE WISHES TO HAVE IT AS A STARTER FOR HIS DINNER."

Trout yogurt? Isn't trout a kind of fish? I can't imagine that would taste very nice, but, each to their own.

"So then, how exactly would we go about doing this?"

"THERE IS A COOKBOOK ON THAT SHELF, WITH ALL OF HIS HIGHNESS'S FAVOURITE RECIPES."

She points to one particular book – it has a rather stylish cover on it. It's rather high though so I initially decide to use a stepladder, but halfway through, I feel an odd... desire, to be stylish, if you will, so I use my wings to fly up and grab it.

On the cover are a number of pictures of different kinds of food – noodles, dumplings, cakes, pizza. They all look really nice – it's starting to whet my appetite!

"So, 'Mother's Cookbook'. This is the one then?"

"INDEED. PAGE 63 HAS THE RECIPE FOR THE TROUT YOGURT."

I flick over to that page, and sure enough, there it is. There's a picture of the yogurt and it doesn't look too bad actually. It says the recipe came from... Fourside? I suppose it makes sense that Master Porky would prefer food from his own time. But how old must this book be then? To survive for all this time? According to this, it should only take 5 minutes and is apparently fairly easy to make. Still, I'm not confident that I'll still be able to make this without screwing something up though.

"The recipe says it produces 3 glasses of yogurt which I assume serves 3 people. We would need to reduce the quantity of ingredients by a factor of three then."

"NOT QUITE. HIS HIGHNESS HAS ALWAYS REQUIRED A... CONSIDERABLY LARGE AMOUNT OF ENERGY IN RELATION TO EVERYONE ELSE. FROM EXPERIENCE, I HAVE FOUND THAT YOU SHOULD ALWAYS GIVE HIM TRIPLE THE AMOUNT THAT ONE PERSON WOULD REQUIRE, SO THE QUANTITY OF INGREDIENTS GIVEN HERE IS ADEQUATE. AS THIS IS YOUR FIRST TIME, I DO NOT MIND ASSISTING YOU, ALTHOUGH YOU WILL NEED TO... COMMAND ME, AS IT WERE."

I can't help but laugh at that one. I never knew she had a sense of humour.

"In which case, I will get and weigh every odd numbered ingredient on the list, if you will get and weigh every even numbered one."

The two of us starting running – well, I start running, Miss Marsh kinda just skates around, I suppose. It's a fairly simple ordeal – I simply remember an ingredient and its quantity required, deduce where the most likely location for it is, and then retrieve it. Some of the ingredients are in the storage room, but it doesn't hinder me much – my eye and my wings make quick work of finding and obtaining the required ingredients.

It's a very simple task, and yet it's oddly soothing – I quite enjoy these kinds of tasks, if only because it gives me time where I can just get lost in my own thoughts. However, doing so has its own risks – as I find out the hard way.

I start to lose focus of everything else around me, focusing only the things that will let me achieve my goal – to make the best trout yogurt for Master Porky. When I retrieve the last of my ingredients, some salt and pepper, I get a bit too lost in my goals... and end up right into a cracker - wielding Miss Marsh. The two of us go tumbling to the ground. It's a bit painful, but I'll live. There's something on top of me.

When I look up, I see a dazed Miss Marsh on top of me. Oh Pork. I try to get her off me but she's firmly on one of my arms and the other one is currently an arm cannon, so I can't quite get her off, so I just give up. And... even then... it feels somewhat... no, very nice, in a way. She feels rather soft and, and warm... a strange quality owing to what she's made off... but it... it feels comforting. Maybe... maybe it's a good thing that I can't get up. I start to put my other arm around her.

"AH. WHAT HAPPENED? AH, AH, AH, COMMANDER! ARE YOU, ARE YOU ALL RIGHT? HERE, LET ME GET OFF YOU."

With that, she lifts herself up as well the ingredients we dropped. I find myself immediately missing her. I lift myself up as well.

"I apologise, Lil' Miss Marshmallow. I should have paid more attention. Are you okay?"

"I AM FINE. PLEASE DO BE MORE CAREFUL IN THE FUTURE. IN ANY CASE. LET'S START MAKING THE YOGURT. YOU'LL NEED TO SLICE THE TROUT FIRST, FOLLOWED BY DICING THE CUCUMBER, DILL AND GARLIC."

"Well, that doesn't seem too hard."

"NO. IT DOES NOT. HOWEVER, I IMAGINE THAT THIS TASK WOULD BE AN IMPOSSIBILITY FOR YOU CURRENTLY, AS CUTTING SOMETHING IS A TASK WHICH GENERALLY REQUIRES THE USE OF 2 HANDS."

My, she's gotten very snarky all of a sudden. I kinda like it. Still, she's right, so I convert my arm cannon back into a hand and start to chop away, slicing the trout into thin slices, and then dicing the other ingredients. Next then... mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Okay, this still doesn't seem too bad.

"VERY GOOD. I HAVE FOUND THAT HIS HIGHNESS LIKES THE YOGURT TO BE AS THICK AND RICH AS POSSIBLE, SO YOU NEED TO STIR THE MIXTURE AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE."

As quickly as possible? Okay, no problem. I start stirring as fast as can, putting all my effort into it. Faster, faster, faster! It's getting quite thick though so it's hard to get through it. Ah, here's an idea!

Diverting power to both hands.

Woah, that's a lot! I can feel the extra energy surging though my hands. I start stirring even faster. I will make this the best snack in the world!

"COMMANDER! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! SLOW DOWN!"

What? Slow down? But she said to stir as fast as I can. Why would I slow down?

In hindsight, the answer to that was a fairly obvious one when I see trout yogurt go flying out onto the bowl onto the table, the walls and even the ceiling. Huh. I'm kinda impressed I managed to get it all the way up there.

"AH! I CANNOT ALLOW THIS TO GET INTO MY PARTS! COMMANDER! WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT BEING CAREFUL?!"

And I got some of the yogurt on Miss Marsh too, it would seem.

"My apologies. Although in my defence, you did say to stir it as quickly as I can. And I did."

"HMM. THAT IS TRUE. I WILL RECORD THIS IN MY MEMORY FOR THE FUTURE, SO I KNOW THAT I MUST GIVE YOU MORE PRECISE INSTRUCTION WITH A REDUCED MARGIN FOR MISINTERPRETATION. I APOLOGISE FOR MAKING THIS MISTAKE. I HOPE THIS HAS NOT NEGATIVELY IMPACTED YOUR OPINION OF MY ABILITIES."

"You are... you're far too... kind. I... I must apologise as well. I've... I've never cooked anything before, ever, and if you weren't there, if I didn't have your help and guidance, I probably would have done something like set some water on fire."

"I DON'T THINK SUCH A THING IS PHYSICALLY POSSIBLE, COMMANDER."

"Trust me, I'd have found a way. Here, let me help you."

I get some tissues and gently start scraping the yogurt off of her. It's sticky, thick, and a pale white, so I think I got the consistency of the yogurt right, even if I over did it.

"THANK YOU... COMMANDER. I... I BELIEVE YOU ARE BEING TOO... HARSH ON YOURSELF. AND PERHAPS... I WAS BEING TOO HARSH AS WELL. I WOULD SAY YOUR COOKING SKILLS ARE MORE THAN ADEQUATE FOR HIS HIGHNESS'S STANDARDS. PERHAPS, A LITTLE LESS... ENTHUSIASM IS NEEDED THOUGH. I SHALL CLEAN THE ROOM FIRST."

She takes the tissues from me and zips around the room cleaning everything. She's very quick – she even manages to clean the ceiling, using her claw. Soon, she's cleaned the entire room.

"AH! HOW DID I MISS THIS? YOU HAVE SOME YOGURT ON YOUR SHIRT! LET ME CLEAN IT."

What? Oh yes, she's right.

"It's fine, I can clean it myself."

"I INSIST, COMMANDER."

She starts scrubbing my shirt vigorously. Hey, that tickles!

"Ah! Stop it! That tickles!"

"I WILL NOT STOP UNTIL YOU ARE CLEAN, COMMANDER."

I try to get away from her and while I'm initially successful, she simply uses her claw to prevent me from escaping.

"No, really, please stop! Stop it, Miss Marsh!" I laugh.

"MISS MARSH? WHO ARE YOU REFERRING TO?"

Oh Pork. I just said that out loud, didn't I?

"It's... it's my nickname. For you. Your name is a bit long to say so... I came up with something shorter to say."

"MISS... MARSH... AN INTERESTING NAME... I HAVE BEEN GIVEN ORDERS BY HIS HIGHNESS TO OBEY YOUR COMMANDS UNLESS THEY WOULD NEGATIVELY AFFECT THE PIGMASK ARMY."

She seems deep in thought.

"IF YOU WOULD LIKE... I CAN STORE THIS NAME IN MY MEMORY BANKS AND... IN FUTURE, I WILL RESPOND TO YOU... WHEN YOU USE THIS NAME."

"Really? I would, I'd like that... a lot."

"UNDERSTOOD. I WILL STORE THIS THEN. I WILL RESPOND TO THE NAME 'MISS MARSH' WHEN USED BY YOU. SO... LET'S TRY MAKING THIS AGAIN."

"Let's... Miss Marsh."

Once again, we gather the ingredients, and I chop up all the ingredients before mixing them up, this time with less power and better results – which in this case means a greater proportion of the yogurt made actually stays in the bowl rather than being out of it. Soon it's done and we pour the yogurt into a large glass.

"THAT SHOULD BE ENOUGH. AS IT HAPPENS, THERE'S A BIT OF EXCESS YOGURT. WHY DON'T YOU HAVE SOME?"

Why not? I worked hard to make this. I take a spoonful of yogurt and a cracker before eating it. It's... interesting. It's not bad, but it tastes like something only fancy people would enjoy. It's... an acquired taste.

"I'm not the biggest fan of it personally, but I hope Master Porky likes it."

Actually, Master Porky, being a king would appear to fit into the category of a person who would enjoy this, but he's also a child, so you could also make a case for the other side as well.

"I'M SURE HE WILL. I THINK YOU'VE DONE VERY WELL, COMMANDER."

"Thank you... Miss Marsh."

"IT IS GETTING LATE. I WILL NEED TO MAKE A MAIN COURSE FOR HIS HIGHNESS – HE HAS REQUESTED SOME STEAK FOR HIS MAIN DISH AND SOME PINK CLOUD COTTON CANDY FOR DESSERT. HOWEVER, I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU WOULD ALSO REQUIRE SOMETHING TO EAT. DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING IN MIND?"

Firstly, Pink Cloud Cotton Candy? As in the Sanctuary? But I thought the Sanctuaries didn't exist? Or maybe it's just the name - cotton candy does bear a striking resemblance to Pink Cloud.

Secondly, something for dinner. Well, I like steak, maybe I'll just have some as well. But then again... I didn't quite like it the last time... maybe I should have something different. But what...

_"What is this? I've never seen this before."_

_"Don't be like that. Your mother put a lot of effort to make this."_

_"What is it though?"_

_"It's my favourite food. I made it for your dad once and he loved it as well!"_

"Miss Marsh... have you ever heard of... an... an omelet?"

"I HAVE. IT IS GENERALLY A MEAL MOST PEOPLE PREFER TO HAVE FOR BREAKFAST, HOWEVER, IF IT WHAT YOU WANT... I WILL GLADLY MAKE IT FOR YOU."

"Do you require any assistance?"

"I BELIEVE YOU HAVE DONE ENOUGH FOR TODAY, COMMANDER. BESIDES, I THINK IT WOULD BE BEST IF WE DO NOT FIND OUT WHETHER IT IS POSSIBLE TO SET AN EGG ON FIRE – IF ONLY BECAUSE I'M FAIRLY SURE THAT IF YOU SUCCEED IN THIS TASK, YOU WOULD HAVE ALSO LIKELY SUCCEEDED IN SETTING EVERYTHING ON FIRE. ALTHOUGH, I COULD USE A FRYING PAN."

Okay, yeah, I really do like her snarky side. She's snarky, fun, interesting, a good teacher and most of all, nice. Really nice...

I get her a frying pan - a Chef's Fry Pan seems like it makes the most sense here. It's quite heavy as well - despite the seemingly impractical nature of one as a weapon, it would certainly hurt if you whacked someone with it. Perhaps Miss Polestar really did have a good idea with these...

Miss Marsh starts off by getting two eggs, whisking them, adding some butter to the frying pan and then heating it up. She adds the eggs and starts mixing them slowly.

"COMMANDER, WOULD YOU LIKE ANYTHING ON YOUR OMELET?"

Anything on my omelet? I can't really think of anything in particular...

_"Are those...?"_

_"Yep. I thought you'd like them. And I put some cheese in yours, Lucas."_

"May I have some... mushrooms then?"

"OF COURSE."

She adds some mushrooms and continues stirring. Soon, the eggs take a more solid form and the mushrooms become embedded into them. It looks and smells really nice!

"HERE YOU ARE, COMMANDER. I... HOPE YOU ENJOY IT."

"Thank you."

I get myself a fork. I can't wait so eat and yet... I can't help but feel apprehensive about this. I really want to like it... because Miss Marsh made it... for me.

I take a bite and... it's quite hot, it almost burns my tongue. It's a little too spicy as well from the pepper...

_"I'm not sure... how do I know if it'll taste good?"_

_"You have to try it."_

Overall, it doesn't leave the best taste initially.

_"Can't I just have some cereal?"_

_"Try it once. If you don't like it, you don't have to finish it. Your brother's trying it."_

_"No. I don't want it!"_

_"Wait. Does that mean that I can do something that you can't then?"_

But I must finish it – if only for Miss Marsh. I wouldn't want to hurt her feelings... assuming robots have feelings. Okay, well, ignoring that, I still can't waste food, so I take some more bites.

_"What?"_

_"I can eat these omelets and you can't!"_

_"Hey! Fine, I'll show you! I bet I can eat my omelet faster than you can!"_

_"You're on!"_

But this time, it tastes different... at first it doesn't seem to have a taste. But then the flavours hit me.

_"So, how does it taste?"_

_"It's..._

The spice of the pepper, the fluffiness of the eggs and the tenderness of the mushrooms... they're... they're...

_"It's... it's wonderful! I suppose... I was wrong."_

_"You, admitting that you were wrong?"_

_"Oh, shut up, Lucas!"_

_"Hey, be nice to your brother! But it's good to see another two join my side! 'Nut cookies are better', my foot...'_

It's nice... no... it's like Miss Marsh... it's really nice. I really like steak... but this... it's so much better. Because it tastes like...

_"I think... this may be my favourite food."_

_"Mine too!"_

Love.

With a great deal of effort, I reluctantly finish eating my last bite of the omelet and wash my plate.

"Thank you, Miss Marsh. It was really good. I need to learn how to how make this."

"I'D BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO TEACH YOU ONE DAY, COMMANDER."

"I... I'd like that. I think... I should be going to bed. I hope Master Porky enjoys his meal. Don't stay up too late, okay?"

"IT IS MY PURPOSE, COMMANDER. BUT... I SHALL TRY NOT TO."

I start leaving but... I turn back and... I give Miss Marsh a hug.

"Thank you... for everything today. Good night, Miss Marsh."

"... GOOD NIGHT, COMMANDER."

With that, I take my leave and head to my... well no... it is... it's also her room, isn't it?

I enter our room and after this long day, lie down and feel the sweet embrace of sleep.

For the first time I can remember, I have nothing but sweet dreams.

**(Where... am I?)**

**(And... what happened?)**

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So to start things off, I need to apologise for the last chapter - specifically its length, which may have deterred some people from reading this. If that was the case then, I apologise and thank you for continuing to read this. The chapters were already getting pretty long but Chapter 10 took it to the extreme. So I'm going to try and keep the chapters about this length. I'll say this though: don't expect these notes to get shorter because I love to ramble. Probably don't qualify as notes then any more...
> 
> So then, this chapter almost wasn't going to be a thing - what will be Chapter 12 would have been here instead. The reason I ended up shifting things was because of the pairing in this chapter: Claus/Masked Man and Lil' Miss Marshmallow - something which I only found out was a thing about a week ago, from TerraChaos83's Earthbound: React To Ships over on Wattpad (definitely worth reading).
> 
> When I first read about Claus/Marshmallow, I was tempted to put it my extensive list of Earthbound ships that fall under 'why is this a thing?' (Eg. Lucas/Porky. WHY IS THIS A THING?).
> 
> But the more I thought about it, the more sense it made and so yeah, I thought a cooking lesson with Marshmallow combined with some awkward cyborg/robot romance was sure to work. So, did it?
> 
> Still, it gave me practice writing romance for the Mother Series which I'll need for the inevitable Naula fic I'll do... someday. It also gave me a convenient way to introduce omelets to Claus.
> 
> For those of you who don't like this ship for whatever reason, it's not gonna be hardcore or anything like that (it's kinda of just an implied thing here), nor will this be the focus of the fic as Marshmallow will still be meeting her end at the same point she does in Mother 3 - I just really wanted this ship to get some PK Love (yeah, that was lame).
> 
> By the way, 'Mother's Cookbook' and the recipe for trout yogurt - yeah, that's actually a thing. Some dedicated fans actually went out of their way to make a cookbook with recipes for food from the Mother Trilogy, called Mother's Cookbook (Pink Cloud Cotton Candy I've heard is another recipe). It's done beautifully and I'm getting a copy of it along with a fan made handbook of Earthbound and Mother 3 for my birthday! If you're a fan of the trilogy, I seriously recommend you get these, they have all been done with so much passion and have lots of detail!
> 
> Next time, Claus gets a taste of the battlefield.


	12. Battlefield

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claus gets his first taste of the battlefield, and what it means to be on it.

One thing I learn about living in the Empire Pork Building is that things are never really boring. One day, the machines on the 96th floor are malfunctioning and I have to go and stop them, the next day, I'm making some dumplings with a robot and making a mess of the room.

It takes me a few attempts to get the dumplings right – I'm not exactly the most gentle person, a trait which is required when making the dough. Miss Marsh has been teaching me recipes every day, although it takes some time to master some of the harder ones (who knew making cotton candy was **this** hard?).

Still, over the course of 2 months, I've learned a number of recipes including the aforementioned dumplings as well as: steak, hummus, pizza (only just though), hamburgers, soup, sausages (Master Porky surprisingly likes to have these on occasion) cookies, lifenoodles, cake, PSI Caramels (which actually do help with my PSI) and of course, omelets.

I would have thought that I'd get tired of having the omelets, and yes, I do prefer some variety but if I ever don't know what to have, some omelets always make things better.

It's been a rather fun experience overall, learning how to cook all these things, especially with the help of Miss Marsh – she's very patient with me, and considering how some of my attempts to cook turn out... well... it's very much appreciated.

Still, even she has her limits as I found out during one memorable occasion, when I put too much water in my first Mach Pizza – it completely fell apart in the oven, and the only part of the pizza that fulfilled the 'mach' part of the name would be the 'machery' I made out of myself.

Miss Marsh had quite the meltdown after that incident and wouldn't let me try to make pizza again for 2 weeks. Still, with her assistance, I'm making lots of progress – with any luck, I should master all these recipes by the end of the month.

Despite all my cooking, I haven't neglected my combat training – the Fierce Pork Trooper has started timing how long it takes for me to take out the fifteen Pigmasks I train with.

My best time is 14 minutes and 32 seconds – less than a minute per Pigmask. The Fierce Pork Trooper has even suggested that I start training with other things, such as some of the robots that have been constructed.

I choose to go against sets of Octobots first – I wonder if the Pigmask Army worked these into Earthbound. The movie has given me a lot of information into how these things work, which gives me a bit of an advantage.

They're not exactly stronger than a Pigmask – but being a robot, they don't get tired, which provides a different sort of challenge. That, and the fact that they like to try and steal my stick.

However, it has indeed been pointed out that despite my abilities, I do lack leadership skills, which is fair enough — the only instance I can think of where I assumed any sort of leadership was during the time where Mr Geneator backfired and attacked the group of Pigmasks I was working with at the time.

In order to remedy this, over the past two months, I've also been learning about how to lead a unit effectively, specifically the Pigmasks I train with, as they are the ones that will be assigned to me if... no, **when** I become Commander.

Today, though, the Fierce Pork Trooper has prepared a... test of sorts, to see how good of a commander I actually am. I must admit... I'm more than a bit apprehensive.

See, when I asked the Fierce Pork Trooper what this test would be, his only response was "Prepare as if you were preparing for a war."

Yeah... that seems rather foreboding so I've made all the preparations for today and I'm going through them now with Miss Marsh.

"SO, COMMANDER, HERE IS EVERYTHING YOU HAVE REQUESTED FOR TODAY. FIRST, YOUR MASTER STICK, WHICH I HAVE POLISHED AND SMOOTHED OVER FOR YOU. I HOPE IT IS TO YOUR SATISFACTION."

She passes me the stick. True to her word, it looks as good as new.

"NEXT, 10 CALORIE STICKS, 10 PIECES OF SPICY JERKY AND 3 BOTTLES OF WATER IN CASE YOU GET DEHYDRATED."

She passes me a bag with all the consumables in them - they'll be useful in case I need a quick energy boost.

"Thank you, Miss Marsh. The stick is in perfect shape and these snacks will be useful in this test. You have my gratitude for doing this all on short notice."

"IT IS OF NO TROUBLE. ONE MORE THING THOUGH... WHILE I WAS MAKING DINNER FOR HIS HIGHNESS YESTERDAY, I HAD SOME INGREDIENTS LEFT OVER... SO I MADE THIS FOR YOU."

She holds out something wrapped in foil.

"Miss Marsh... you didn't have to. What... what is this?"

"IT IS A LUCKY SANDWICH. EATING IT IS SUPPOSED TO BRING YOU GOOD LUCK. I DO NOT KNOW IF SUCH A THING IS TRUE...BUT I WISH YOU IT ALL THE SAME FOR TODAY, COMMANDER."

"... thank you... Miss Marsh."

With that, I leave for the training facility, but I'm told that I won't be going there for this test. Instead, I'll be going to an area in Murasaki Forest. Interesting.

The area is large and open, with a few sheds scattered around — they don't look very durable though. I'd say that they're meant for hiding, rather than for protection. But why put them in a forest?

I head over the Fierce Pork Trooper and the Pigmasks. On the ground by them is a hat.

"Ah, you're here! Good, we can begin the test. Today, we will see if you have the leadership needed to be the Commander — if you rely purely on your own strength, you won't get very far. If you fail... well, I have orders from His Highness that we imprison you... for an indefinite amount of time."

What?! Imprisonment?! Forever?!

I... I'll never be Commander... I won't be able to play with Master Porky again... or make recipes with Miss Marsh... then, I... I can't fail. I won't fail.

"But, let's hope that doesn't happen. There's sixteen of us — Jenson's on sick leave, but that actually works out perfectly today. We're gonna split into two teams — eight on each. You will be leader of one team and I will be leader of another. We'll draw names from the hat to decide."

So, we take turns picking names from the hat, and we quickly get our teams of eight.

"Okay, so here's how things are gonna work. This is a battlefield, and so we battle. The aim is defeat the opposing team's leader — do that, and you win. I think it's fairly obvious, but I'll say it nonetheless: if your team wins, you pass, if not..."

I get a one way ticket to the New Pork Dungeons.

However, while I shouldn't get overconfident, I think my chances of winning this are reasonably high. I've beaten all of these Pigmasks before, so taking on just seven should be fairly easy. And I have support from seven other Pigmasks.

The only threat therefore, would be the main target — the Fierce Pork Trooper. I've only ever fought him once, during my first day here, but it left enough of an impression on me to know not to underestimate him. But, I've gotten far more powerful, and again, I have the other Pigmasks, so if I can isolate him, this shouldn't be very hard.

"However, I think we're all well aware that a straight up brawl would be rather one sided, because you can fly, we can't, so you can simply use your psychic powers to rain lightning down on us all."

Oh. Yeah... you know, that also works. Why didn't I think of that?

"Luckily, I accounted for that, and I've got a way to take away that advantage and put us all on equal footing. But first, you all need equipment. Let's move!"

He goes to the building behind him and the rest of us follow. Inside... it's an armoury of sorts. There are many suits of body armour, in addition to a number of large guns — however, they seem too long to be the laser guns that are traditionally used by the Pigmasks, nor do they seem to resemble other weapons like my own arm cannon.

There are also some crates scattered around which are locked up. What could be in there?

Either way, I take it we're supposed to use these, so we all change into the suits here and take one of these guns.

"So then, these guns, they don't fire lasers, these fire something a lot more fun."

He aims at a wall be firing pressing the trigger... and, I think I'm seeing things... but a sphere flies out of the barrel, and when it hits the wall, it splatters, covering the wall in green paint... that's quite the interesting choice of ammunition.

"Paintballs. Now, these things may not look like it, but they hurt. Especially if you fire them at close range, since these things rely on compressed air or something like that to fire these paintballs are high speeds.

"Those crates have more paintballs in them, and you'll need to reload occasionally for obvious reasons. There's a bunch of these crates around the fields outside, so you'll never be too far away from ammunition, but that doesn't mean you'll be safe, cause anyone can still fire at you."

"Now, this suits and helmets have sensors on them and if a paintball hits them, they'll record where you got hit. If they've racked up enough damage, you 'die', which means you're out of the game."

"Of course, different areas of your body will have varying impacts — get shot in head or the heart, and there's a good chance that you'll be instantly out. Your arms and legs though, you could probably take a few shots there. And yes, friendly fire is possible, so be careful who you're firing at."

"Brute force won't help you at all here. You've gotta rely on your own skills and instincts or you'll end up dead on the ground — much like on a real battlefield. Any questions?"

No one raises any.

"Okay, there's a red base and a blue base on opposite ends of the field. If you're with me, red base, if you're with the kid, blue base. Get going and wait in there until I contact you."

While walking to the blue base, I make notes regarding the surroundings. The area is densely populated with trees which could be used to hide or used to take cover from.

The various huts around the area also seem to serve a similar purpose, being larger and therefore offering more protection, though they are much fewer in number.

The grass and hills could also be useful as our suits are of a similar colour, so we may be able to blend in if we position ourselves correctly.

Inside of the blue base is a video screen, and some more crates and guns. The video screen shows an incoming call, so I accept. The Fierce Pork Trooper appears.

"Good, you made it. So, the bases, are a safe zone, we can't go inside of them at all, but you can't fire at us either — if anyone breaks that rule, it's an instant disqualification."

"There's ammunition in here as well but inside, and only inside the bases, are paint grenades and paint mines. The grenades are fairly self explanatory — they're good for a large area, but you're unlikely to 'kill' someone with these, unless they're in the centre of the blast zone."

"The mines are the opposite, you'll need to place these well for them to be effective, but if someone steps on them... well, they'll be blown sky high."

"Everyone can spend some time practicing with the guns, grenades and mines, say, half an hour, and then we start the test proper."

As it happens, I have had a little practice with guns but not all that much, I'm more used to my own arm cannon. It takes me a bit of time to adjust, but it doesn't feel significantly different. I, and the rest of the Pigmasks, also try out some of the grenades and mines, as they could be useful.

With ten minutes left, we decide to try and figure out a strategy.

"Okay. There's eight of us, and eight of them. Chances are, we'll be quickly taken out if we split up individually, but staying together also has its own risks, that being that we risk being easily taken out by a single grenade. So we travel in pairs."

"How exactly do we go about approaching the enemy, Commander?"

"One good shot, and that could be it. Stay out of sight at all costs. If you decide to approach a target, be sure that you have support nearby. Oh, and if you place a mine, make sure to mark it on your map."

"The enemy is all the way on the other side." I point to the corresponding area on the map.

"So if we advance as quickly as possible over there, we can take them all out at once if they haven't gone very far."

The Fierce Pork Trooper calls us again soon after.

"Final clarifications then: if you're killed, you cannot fire at anyone at all. However, you're free to leave and go back home after, or stay in the armoury to watch the battle play out. The last team standing wins, and if both captains are still left standing after six hours, the team with the most people left wins!"

But, wait...

"Wait, what if both teams have equal numbers of people?"

"Well... I dunno, we flip a coin? Yeah, that'll works. Okay, we start in 3... 2... 1... GO!"

With that, the eight of us scramble out of the base, split into pairs and start advancing towards the red base as fast as we can. Two of the pairs stick on the outer part of the arena while the rest of us move on the inside.

We're able to see everyone else at first, but the more we advance, the harder it is, and eventually I can only see the Pigmasks I'm with. Still, I have a relatively good idea where they all are, so that shouldn't be an issue.

What is an issue, is the size of this field. I underestimated how big it really is — it's been close to 45 minutes and we're not even halfway there. It's a good thing we all brought rations because the terrain can be harsh at times, and these suits are quite heavy.

The suits have a radar on them which lets us monitor each other — we appear as blue dots on the map. However, we can't see the enemies on the map, so we still have to find them the old fashioned way.

It's not until an hour or so of walking until I think I hear some sort of noise.

"Did you hear that as well, Commander?"

"Yes... it came from near those trees... let's take a look... carefully."

Slowly, the two of us make an approach towards some trees to the west. Now, there are some squirrels in this forest, I've seen them during some of my visits to the Chimera Laboratory, so it could merely be one of them.

Nevertheless... I must also entertain the possibility of it being one of the enemy.

There's no one hiding behind most of these trees, so we're tempted to assume it was nothing significant.

But I take a closer look at our surroundings, and I notice something— there's one of those huts nearby, which doesn't have any inside currently. However, nearby said hut is a particularly large tree that we haven't yet checked behind...

"We've probably just heard a squirrel or the wind through the trees. Let's just keep moving."

However, while I'm saying this, I make a motion with my fingers towards the tree in question and thankfully, the Pigmask understands what I mean. The two of us raise our guns slowly and approach that tree. When we're near it, I use my fingers and count to 3 with them.

On 3, the two of us charge behind the tree and fire away... at air. There was no behind here at all. Damn it.

"There's no one here, Commander. Maybe it really was just the wind."

I suppose... I will have to admit I was wrong. The two of us turn around and continue along our original path.

_Splat!_

What the...! A tree next to us was suddenly covered in paint. There's... there's someone here... haha... I can't move... my feet... I... feel scared... it could all be over here...

"Commander!"

What? What is it? I turn to lo — OH MY PORK!

I immediately roll away, barely dodging the next paintball — it hits the ground and coats it in red paint."

"Let's get moving!"

The two of us immediately break into a sprint, heading towards where the paintball was shot. We hide behind trees as we go, firing occasionally. The more we do so, the more the enemy fires back, which gives us a better indication of where they are. The two of us eventually make it to where they are, and surround him, before firing away.

It's two on one, and he has nowhere to run, leaving him at our mercy, so it's not very long before we manage to kill him, signified by —

_"YOU'RRRRRE OUT!_" Okay, that's kinda funny.

"Aw man, I'm the first person out! Well, nice job, you two... but you'll never beat us! We are the superior team! The reds will win!"

"Well, sorry, but I aim to make you all feel blue blue, after this is over."

The other Pigmask I'm with raises a question of his own.

"Yeah, so, what are you gonna do, now that you're dead and all?"

"Meh. The boss says we can go home if you get out, but I wanna see how things play out, so I'm going to the armoury. So, bad luck to you two!"

Well... that happened.

"We need to get moving, Commander. The radar shows when one of your teammates has been eliminated, so the enemy will know we've been here, and having them all swarm us won't end well."

"Right. However... let's take a moment to lay a trap of sorts."

I place down one of the paint mines, and cover it with some leaves and dirt.

"They may come here, knowing that this was their teammate was defeated. If they do, then this may very well get them."

We continue our advance across the forest for the next hour or so. It's fairly uneventful, that is, until we run into another Pigmask — one of our own.

And he's been hit!

He has paint on his legs and he's panting heavily... as if he was running away?

"Commander! Good to see... you're still alive!"

"Same to you. You seem awfully exhausted though... and where is your teammate?"

"He's... he's dead. We got caught in a fight with two of the enemy... and, he didn't make it. We managed to take out one of them, but the other fled, though not before we each managed to get some good shots on the other."

"I see... we have also taken out another of the enemy, so that puts us at an advantage in terms of sheer numbers."

It's here I notice his exhaustion — he could use some help.

"Here. Take some water, and some Beef Jerky. It's not much... but it should help."

"What? Oh no, Commander, I couldn't!"

"Then... it's an order."

The Pigmask opens his mouth to respond but closes it, before nodding and taking the items.

"Thank you... I feel much better."

The other Pigmask I'm with interjects.

"You should come with us. It's not safe to be alone, and it's unlikely you've been followed."

"If that's alright with you two."

Admittedly, three isn't ideal, but it _is_ certainly better than that Pigmask wandering the forest alone.

"I see no reason why not."

The three of us keep moving onwards, while keeping a lookout for any of the enemy. We also monitor the remaining four Pigmasks on our team. They seem to be fine and overall, though some of them start flashing — indicating that they're being attacked. Still, they don't disappear so they are either took out the attackers or made their escape.

Eventually, we reach their base.

"Right... we can stay here, and wait for the rest of our team to arrive... the enemy will have to eventually come back here, and when they do, we annihilate them all."

"So...we camp here then?"

"Yes."

We hide behind some of those huts nearby, watching for other teammates to arrive, or for an enemy. We don't see any enemies, but one of our teammates disappears off the radar, so now each team has 6 people.

Over time, the three remaining Pigmasks join. While two of them are completely clean, one of them has been shot in the chest — it's a miracle he isn't out!

He tells us that they got caught in a fight with 3 others with his partner being killed and himself being heavily injured. So that explains why one disappeared of the radar.

I reiterate my plan, and we all take positions around. About an hour passes, with us just waiting there, leaving us halfway into the time limit.

And no one comes.

Patience is certainly a virtue, but after an hour of no results, I think we may need a different idea.

I walk out and signal for the rest of the Pigmasks to join.

"This isn't working. It'll take them ages to come back here if they went to our base as well. And by then, we'll be out of time... and it's currently tied, isn't it?"

"So we should go and search for them?"

"Perhaps... that may very well be the only way we can win..."

However, as I'm saying this, I think I see something rolling in the corner of —

_WAIT IT'S A —_

"DIVE!"

We all dive in different directions just as the paint grenade explodes, showering the area in paint... that was far too close.

"GET THEM!"

Suddenly, from nowhere, a bunch of Pigmasks appear! There's, one, two, three, FOUR of them —and the Fierce Pork Trooper!

They all throw a grenade at us, and I don't need to give an order — we all run!

OH PORK! I can't lose now, not this far in!

"After them! Don't let them get away!"

Unfortunately, they're all after us. We need to get away. We keep running, and I think we may be a little bit faster than they are, so we are able to gain a bit of ground on them, but it's not enough to necessarily lose them. We need to scare them off.

And I think I know how.

"Everyone! Use your grenades!"

We all turn and throw a grenade, which together, all send an explosion of paint up into the air, forcing the enemy to stop chasing us. We still keep running though.

Eventually, we make our way to a junction. Which way then...? Wait... what if we throw them off?

"Let's try to divert them... fire at those trees over there."

"What for?"

"They'll think we went that way, which will buy us time."

They splatter the trees as I requested, and one of the Pigmasks and myself also place a mine on both pathways, which will hopefully get some of them.

We keep moving, keeping a look out for any other Pigmasks... if we can make it to the armoury, we can restock, make a plan, and hopefully get a victory. Yeah, sounds like a...

"STOP!"

Suddenly, there's an explosion of paint which engulfs the Pigmask in the lead! A mine... we all immediately stop in our tracks, but it's too late for him.

He's... gone.

A Pigmask jumps from behind a tree nearby.

"Surprise, mother —"

"OPEN FIRE!"

We all unleash a salvo of paintballs to avenge our fallen comrade, but the Pigmask quickly goes back to his hiding spot. Still, if he's the only one here, then this will be quick. We march up the hill and surround him, before pummelling him with as many paintballs as we can, before we hear —

_'YOU'RRRRE OUT!'_

Great, with that Pigmask down, things are more even, 5 on each team.

Unfortunately, while doing so, the Pigmask had enough time to throw one last grenade which explodes spectacularly. Thankfully, we all manage to avoid the blas—

_'YOU'RRRRE OUT!'_

...I hate being wrong.

"I'm out. Sorry, Commander, it's up to you four now."

"Same here, if I had been a bit more careful, I could have avoided that mine."

"It is fine. You both fought admirably, and you both deserve rest. Good luck making it back."

The two make their leave, leaving the rest of us. However, after all of the running none of the Pigmasks can keep going on without a break, and neither can I...

Wait! I still have some more food! I share the calorie sticks and beef jerky between everyone as well as some water.

I don't take anything myself, even though the Pigmasks insist I do... I don't want it, nor do I really need it...

Besides, I can't help but feel sick... because of the situation... I'm more nervous than ever. Now, we're at a disadvantage in terms of numbers. Not only that, the rest of the enemy are still on our tail, and they may very well be close to us... and we're all exhausted...

We're... we're gonna lose, aren't we?

I... you know... I've been doing all this training to be the Commander... for Master Porky. But... I don't think I ever really considered how seriously this position is... the abilities needed, the mental aptitude that is required. I remember wondering whether... I was a suitable candidate for being the Commander, and...

I'm not, am I? I've led my team into an ambush and now half of them are 'dead'. Sure, this is just a game... but what if it was real?

What if... what if I was up against the people of Tazmily, who willingly attack those that oppose them, and brutally maim those before them? I'd have led the people under my command into... death. All those lives... they're all on me. I would be responsible.

And now I'm here... on a battlefield, outnumbered... the enemy approaching, our team divided... and if I lose, no, **when** I lose... that's it.

I don't become the Commander.

I go to prison forever.

And... the story ends there for me, doesn't it?

But that's not the worst part. I... I'll never get to train with these Pigmasks and the Fierce Pork Trooper again, who I've spent so much time with... I've come to see them as friends. Friends... it's nice...

And Master Porky... he gave me a life, both figuratively and literally... he helped me become stronger. I'm... I'm nothing but immensely grateful that I could get to know him...but now... I've squandered all the trust he put in me.

And... I'll never see Miss Marsh again. The two months that we've spent together... I've really grown rather fond of her. She's helped me adjust to my new living space... when I came to New Pork City to live here, I felt alone... because I was leaving my friends behind, and I haven't been able to see Master Porky at all since I moved.

But I found a new friend in her... she's been very kind to me... and living with her, it's been really nice. She's funny — it may not be very often, but on those occasions... she never fails to make me laugh.

And I can't forget her patience with me (most of the time) when she teaches me to cook, even when I keep messing things up. I... I really enjoy cooking with her... spending time with her... she's so much... more than a friend for me...

It feels... it's like... I just want to hug her... and I don't ever want to let go.

But... that's over too, isn't it?

I absentmindedly rummage around in my bag... I'm not sure why though, I know there's nothing in there... wait, there is!

I pull out the last remaining thing in it... something in foil? I unwrap it... it's...

_"IT IS A LUCKY SANDWICH. EATING IT IS SUPPOSED TO BRING YOU GOOD LUCK.... I DO NOT KNOW IF SUCH A THING IS TRUE...BUT I WISH YOU IT ALL THE SAME FOR TODAY, COMMANDER."_

That's right. Miss Marsh... she made this...

For me.

It's supposed to be for luck... but would luck help me out now? Probably not. It's likely... just a myth. Much like my chances of winning this.

But... do I need luck to win... I don't... do I?

Why don't I just surrender... if I know I can't win? Because I want to be the Commander.

Then... why do I want to become the Commander? To be stronger? No... there are so many different kinds of strength... and being the Commander requires more than one.

To serve Master Porky then? That drive... it feels stronger than pursuing strength, yes... and yet... it still doesn't feel right. For a time, it was enough. And though I still want to serve Master Porky and assist him... the thought alone no longer instils the same drive in me.

Then what?

It's something... different. I want things to stay the same. I don't want to lose, any of the people, that I've come to know, whether it be because I won't see them... or because they'll be... taken.

I... I won't lose them! I CAN'T!

I... I don't need luck to win... and I don't need it to keep going either! I just need... that feeling...

The feeling when I'm training with these people I've developed this bond with, when I'm being friends with Master Porky, when I'm spending time with Miss Marsh...

That feeling... I won't waste any of it!

I eat the sandwich... it tastes very nice, but it's what it represents... that's what makes it taste so good...

Let's win this.

"We may be at a disadvantage... but I refuse to give up yet. The enemy hasn't backed us into a corner, and so we can still turn the tables back on them! Even if the chances are small! The enemy will be coming this way for us soon, so we need to prepare this area and ambushes them."

"But last time we tried an ambush on the ground, it didn't work, Commander."

"Exactly. This time... we take the high ground."

We all scale the trees as fast as we can, and as high as we can. From this high up, I can almost see above all the trees, the sun setting over the sky. This time though, we can see everything... and this time, things will go much differently...

We stay here, for about two minutes, until we see the enemy approaching... all five of them... perfect.

They draw their guns and start searching the area below. The Fierce Pork Trooper seems confused and starts talking with the rest of the Pigmasks.

"Where are they? We saw the radar go off here and the only direction they could have gone is back, and we would have seen them!"

The rest of my team looks at me, fire in their eyes and I nod, holding my fingers in the air...

3... 2... 1...

"AIR RAID!"

We dive off the trees with our guns, firing as fast as we can, managing to take out two of the enemy Pigmasks, before the remaining ones run.

"After them!"

It's somewhat ironic now I think about it — now they're the ones running from us and we're the ones outnumbering them. They try firing back and throwing grenades, but their aim isn't very good as they also have to run in the opposite direction.

The two Pigmasks and the Fierce Pork Trooper split up in different directions... alright, two can play at that game.

I tell one of the Pigmasks to follow to the Pigmask on the left, and the remaining two to chase after the Fierce Pork Trooper, while I follow the Pigmask on the right.

It's not long before I'm able to get close to the Pigmask in question so I can land a finishing shot.

Ready, aim, and...

_*click*_

Oh... come on... why now?!

"Ha! You're out of ammo! Now stand down, or prepare to be wiped."

Damn it! Of course, I'd had to run out of ammo at the what would have to be, without a doubt, the most inopportune time, in the history of inopportune times!

...actually, no, scratch that — the time when Jeff ran out of ammo for his bazooka just before he was going to kill the Starman Deluxe might just beat this... yeah, I've watched that movie far too many times, haven't I?

"Surrender, Commander, or else!"

No, it can't just end like this! In frustration, I accidentally push the trigger on my gun.

_Splat!_

Oh.

It was just jammed. My bad.

"Or else what?"

He raises his gun into the air.

"Wrong answer."

I'm quicker to the punch... or shot, in this case, and fire at his chest three times in quick succession, before being graced with the sweet sound of defeat.

Now to find the other two and finish them off.

I haven't deviated much from the others so I simply retrace my steps and... hm... which way now? I did send two Pigmasks after the Fierce Pork Trooper, so they should be able to deal with him. However, the remaining Pigmask is in a one on one, so he may need some support.

I head along the left path as quickly as I can until I get near the two Pigmasks currently in a fight. The one on the enemy team currently is on the offensive which puts the one on my team at a disadvantage.

Thankfully, I think I may have a very easy way of regaining the advantage.

"Hey!"

Predictably, the enemy Pigmask turns around — only to get shot in the chest by me, and in the back by the other Pigmask, immediately killing him.

Was that a cheap strategy? Yes.

Do I care? Oh, well, no, not at all.

The Pigmask and I make our way along the path where the Fierce Pork Trooper and the other two Pigmasks went — if we take him out, we win.

We head along and... hey, I recognise this area... it's the same place where we took out that first Pigmask.

But, anyway, it's a good thing we got there quickly though since the Fierce Pork Trooper isn't going down without a fight.

He's on top of a hill and he's using the high ground very effectively, by using what may be an equally cheap strategy as the one I just used — that being to simply toss grenades down and fire through the explosions.

The paint thrown up from the grenades blocks our vision, which makes it harder to see the paintballs he shoots, and trying to dodge both the explosions and his shots makes it impossible for us to fire back.

Simple, but very effective.

Despite being outnumbered, 4 to 1, he still keeps the pressure up on us.

"Ah! I'm down!"

Okay, he's still outnumbered, but now it's only 3 to 1. But still, with him up there, if we don't figure out something soon, it won't matter that we outnumber him — he'll take us all out anyway!

Wait.

Wait a minute. We're idiots... we're all just clumped around here, which makes it easy to hit us with one grenade. But if we split up...

"Split up, surround the hill and then advance up it!"

We form a triangle of sorts around the hill and start moving up it. The Fierce Pork Trooper momentarily stops — he's realised exactly what we're doing.

We're spaced out far enough that the explosion from a grenade will only harm the person he threw it at, so he'll need to throw at least three grenades to take us all out.

The Fierce Pork Trooper looks at each of us individually, as if trying to decide which one of us he should go for first, but he stops again, realising the second trap in our plan.

See, he could take us all out by throwing three grenades but in the time it would take to do so, at least one of us would be able to make it up the hill and take the opportunity to kill him.

Quite simply, he's cornered. There's absolutely **no** way for him to escape.

"Clever, very clever. But did you account for the fact that I can do... THIS!"

I wonder what exactly he means by that, but I soon find out — he takes a few steps back and runs before jumping high off the hill, over us all before landing and running essentially finding... a way to escape.

...I have got to stop make these certain statements.

"After him!"

However, while in the air, the Fierce Pork Trooper fires four shots which barely miss me, but the two Pigmasks aren't so lucky — they both get hit and die... so now...

"You're all alone now, kid. Just you and me!"

He fires a few shots at me, but I was expecting that and already leapt to one side, returning his 'present', with a grenade.

He doesn't quite appreciate my present though and he quickly moves out of the way.

For the next few minutes, the two of us keep repeating the same cycle: someone fires, the other ones dodges, fires back, they dodge, rinse and repeat.

It's just a war of attrition, with the loser being the one that runs out of ammo first.

If I can outlast him or I had some way of just... instantly killing him, then I'd win.

The issue is I can't outlast him — I have less ammo and grenades, so, if I simply keep going on like this, it's a war I'll lose.

I'm not confident enough in my accuracy to get a good shot at his heart either, so that's out, and I'll be lucky to get a shot on him with all the paint being thrown around in the air...

Wait... paint thrown in the air... and this area... there is a way, isn't there?

Let's check the map... it's still here!

Oh... this is risky... but it may be my only option.

Okay. Deep breath.

I take out one of my few remaining grenades. What I've been doing is throwing them up and then trying to get a few shots in.

This time, when I throw it, I wait for it to explode... and RUN!

"Hey! You can't run forever!"

You know, it's amazing how much energy your body seems to have when someone stronger is chasing you, but it's serving me well right now!

I head to a specific area on my map as fast as I can, because I know the Fierce Pork Trooper is very hot on my tail. It's... no, a bit to the left, ah, here!

I head in a straight line from this area, which has me going down a bump of sorts, and then... I stop. Yeah, sounds crazy... but here's to hoping.

The Fierce Pork Trooper catches up to me. He's situated above me, but he's in front of me. Let's hope this works.

"Finally, I've caught up to you. No more running away, kid. You gonna have to fight."

"Or do I?"

"What? I mean, yes? Cause, you have to defeat me in order to win! Plus, you're too far away to shoot me and the elevation here means that even if you could, your shots would still miss."

"You're right. You see, I know I can't beat you. I have less ammo then you and you're better at this than me. But the thing is, you can't shoot me either, because having the high ground means your shots will just fly over me, and you can't throw a grenade that far.

So if I just stay here, we'll draw, because of the time limit. And then, it's a coin toss to decide the winner, which gives me a 50% chance of winning, which are much better then the odds I have of winning this right now. It's foolproof."

"Except it isn't, kid. What if, I just come closer to you?"

Perfect.

"Oh... well... I... didn't think about that."

"Haha! A good plan, but alas, that fatal flaw is your undoing."

The Fierce Pork Trooper charges straight at me, his footsteps punctuated by the crunching of leaves beneath his feet, the wind in the trees, the chirping of birds...

And then, a mechanical click.

Upon hearing it, the Fierce Pork Trooper immediately stops moving, before putting his left food down away from the one his right one, which is on the ground.

He uses his left foot to sweep away the leaves and dirt around his right foot, before seeing...

"Oh, you clever devil..."

He lifts his right foot up, and the mine explodes in a beautiful glory of blue, blue paint before I'm graced one last time with,

_"YOU'RRRRRE OUT!"_

And that means... I win?

"Man, I did not see that one coming, that was very good. Congrats, kid."

"Soo... I win, right? Right?"

"Well... actually, you see... nah, I'm just messing with you, you win."

I do? I do! I win! Yes!

"Let's get back to the armory."

After much walking, we arrive, to the 14 Pigmasks who had been eliminated. They open their mouths, I imagine to ask who won, but they quickly shut them when the answer becomes obvious, due to the Fierce Pork Trooper being, well, covered in blue paint.

"Everyone! The kid's one step closer to being our new Commander!"

There's a great amount of cheering and applause for me... it feels great...

"Thank you. It was... difficult... and I was worried about the consequences for failure... but nevertheless, I have succeeded!"

Some of the Pigmasks shift around and take a few glances away... strange. One of them turns to the Fierce Pork Trooper.

"Ah... yeah, should we tell him, sir?"

"Well... ah, you know what, fine. He deserves to know, I suppose."

"Know what?"

"Well, kid, you know how we said if you failed, the King had given orders for you to be imprisoned forever?"

"Yes..."

"Yeah, you see... that was all a lie."

"What?!"

"It was Fassad's orders to tell you that to make you... extra motivated, if you get me."

Of course, it was _Fassad._ Why _would_ it be anyone else?

"And you all knew about this?!"

There's a chorus of replies in the affirmative from the rest of the Pigmasks.

"So, you mean to tell me, that I was **this** worried about never seeing anyone again, never seeing you all again... and it was all a lie?!"

"I never knew you cared so much, kid!"

I'm just lost for words... oh wait, no — I have the perfect words!

"I... I hate you all."

But, of course... that couldn't be further from the truth. It was a cruel trick, perhaps, but a necessary one.

And from it, I've learned a lesson of sorts... it does not matter how strong you are as an individual... because if you rely on your own strength, you won't get very far at all.

It's those around you, those who stand beside you... that's what counts... isn't it?

And one day, the dream will come true. I'll be...

**The Commander.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So you know how I said I was going to try and make these chapters shorter? Yeah, that did not last very long, did it? I'll spare you the incessant ramblings, because I don't actually have much to say.
> 
> For how much Claus is supposed to be the Commander of the Pigmask Army, you never really see him do much, well, commanding. Well, here's my efforts at remedying that.
> 
> This one was really hard to write — you would not believe how much research I had to do into paintball for this (plus a little into Splatoon), and in the end... yeah, I'd say I'm more pleased with Chapter 11 then this. I hope this was alright though.
> 
> Next time, Claus visits the Thunder Tower.


	13. Deserted Marshmallows

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claus makes his journey to the Thunder Tower — with the looming farewell of a close friend.

You know that saying, 'time flies when you're having fun'? Well, I understand what it means now — it's been 2 months since I had that test, but it's only felt like 2 weeks!

What fun have I been having then? Well, just the usual —like beating Octobots into submission.

It makes for a good chance to think about things at least... like the future, the things I'll do when I become Commander and some other things, such as the Octobots themselves.

You see, they really confuse me. Did Octobots exists in Master Porky's time?

See, in the movie, Octobots were not being influenced by Giygas like most things were in the movie — like Starman, Octobots willingly (as willingly as a robot can, anyway) serve Giygas and thus must have not existed before Giygas invaded in the movie. So what's the issue?

Giygas does not actually _exist_.

So... then did someone else make them in real life? If Octobots really did exist in Master Porky's time, then why would they be agents of Giygas? But, if they were made in the present (as in, my present), then why would they be retroactively made one of Giygas's minions?

Huh. You know, considering I've watched the movie so many times that I can practically recite almost every line by memory (I'm still working on memorising Paula's lines and imitating a girl's voice isn't exactly easy), I'm surprised I never really considered this before.

In fact, while I'm at it, the ending also confuses me. You see, Giygas was supposed to be the saviour for the world.

Why did he cause so much chaos around the world then?

One could argue that this was his attempt to stop Ness, Paula, Jeff and Poo from getting to the Sanctuaries — but the Sanctuaries do nothing!

The Sanctuaries let Ness go to Magicant, in which he gains an enormous boost in power — but in the end, that power boost means nothing, when they're facing Giygas and his inexplicable PSI attacks.

Giygas would have won, if it weren't for Paula's intervention by praying, so why did he need to stop the four from ever going to the Sanctuaries? Was he worried that they could have been powerful enough to kill him if they got to them?

In which case, fair enough, better safe then sorry, but again, why make other people suffer? I point this out because of Stonehenge Base, where innocent people were taken hostage.

There's also the Mani Mani Statue.

If anything... Giygas being the villain, as was the case for 99% of the movie, makes a lot more sense. You know, he's gone completely insane, doesn't really know what he's doing. It may not be the most complicated thing but... I don't know, I think it makes sense.

Wait. What am I doing? Giygas isn't _real_. None of this matters... does it? No. Giygas isn't _real,_ the Sanctuaries aren't _real_, the whole thing _never_ happened.

The only thing that did happen, is that Ness, Paula, Jeff and Poo actually did exist, they almost killed Master Porky, and they're _despicable_ human beings that should be suffering for all eternity.

Yeah.

Anyway, that's how I spend my mornings, the afternoons are spent cooking with a killer robot — well, a killer robot to her enemies, anyway.

I recall on one occasion, I asked Miss Marsh, as a joke, if she would spar with me. As I probably should have guessed, she took the suggestion seriously, and I, for... some reason, accepted it.

I thought that I would beat her easily.

So, did I beat her? Yes.

Was it easy?

Yeah... no.

I mean, half of that was probably because I didn't want to actually hurt her, but even considering that, she's very tough, despite her pretty exterior.

Pretty? Well... I suppose she is pretty, considering she is a robot. Pretty doesn't seem to fit though to describe her though... perhaps... cute? Yes... cute, that's the word I'd use...

Wait, _why_ am I thinking about this?

Back to the point... which was... um... ah, yes, battle!

So, despite her cute exterior, she's very tough — that claw of hers really hurts, especially when you're being grabbed by it and slammed into the ground over and over again.

However, being a robot and therefore being made of metal does have a number of disadvantages when facing someone who is capable of using an electrical attack.

Like me.

Even then, it took a fair few uses of PK Thunder before she conceded — again, she's very tough.

Overall, it's been very fun living with her over the last four months. However, today is a very special day — one I've been waiting for a very long time.

I get to visit the Thunder Tower.

It's actually been finished for a few months, but Master Porky hasn't been able to visit it since he's apparently been very busy recently... for some reason — no one knows exactly what... except for Fassad.

But he went there last week and today, he's asked me to visit as well. I'm quite looking forward to seeing the tower personally.

I even have my first... mission, of sorts. It's... not one I'd like to complete though...

See, Miss Marsh was constructed for the purpose of guarding Master Porky's room in the Thunder Tower, and since that room has actually been finished, she's coming with me today, and I am to safely escort her there.

But... that means she'll be leaving me... and I'll be alone.

I know it is selfish of me... but I do wish she didn't have to leave... I will miss her greatly. But... I must follow Master Porky's orders. He has given them to me, and I will not fail him...

However, while it would make sense for the two of us to take a Porkship all the way to the Thunder Tower, apparently this is not an option as there are some issues with the tower.

I don't quite understand it myself, but there seems to be some issue with the tower that cause dangerous storms or something and as I know from experience, lightning tends to hit aerial objects very well, so flying in isn't an option.

Hence, we're going on foot, and the quickest way is through the desert, where there is a facility made by the Pigmasks that has some sort of alternative transportation to allow us to get to the tower.

So, the two of us take a Porkship all from New Pork City to the desert... I must admit though... I am somewhat concerned about going through this desert.

Why?

It's called the **Death** Desert, and for good reason — supposedly, many have gone into this desert and have never been seen again.

That... is very scary.

The creatures here are also supposedly very violent, which further contributes to its name. I think if I am careful, I should be able to get through here relatively safely.

It could even be a good way to see how strong I've developed... it sounds fun, in a way.

However... I fear for Miss Marsh... she is capable of defending herself very well but nevertheless... I'll keep my eyes (both regular and mechanical) open. I... I wouldn't want her to come to any harm.

The two of us land with one of the Pigmasks in my group seeing us off.

"Are you sure the two of you will be alright?"

"We will. Thank you for getting us here."

"INDEED. YOU HAVE MY GRATITUDE AS WELL."

"Well... if you're sure. Good luck with your test, Commander!"

Ah, yes. Master Porky has informally told me that this is a test of sorts... if I can safely escort Miss Marsh all the way through Death Desert to the Thunder Tower.

I won't fail either of them.

"SO THEN, COMMANDER, I ASSUME YOU'LL TAKE THE LEAD."

"Yes... give me a moment though..."

I'm looking for a map of the desert, I think I have one... ah, here it is!

A holographic display fills my eyes, splitting the area into various subsections with important landmarks in green. Ah, I can see the facility in the northeast! Let's get moving then!

The two of us make our way through the desert as fast we can, staying away from as many creatures as we can — some of them do chase us down though, seeking a fight, so we are forced to give them one.

Still, our combined strength is enough to take down most things that get in our way easily. The sand lizards go down very easily with a few swings and Miss Marsh comes up with her own effective way of dealing with the dung beetles — simply pick them up and throw them away.

It's kinda funny — whenever she sees one, her eyes narrow and she gives this cute, robotic tut before she tosses them.

"You don't seem to like the beetles very much. How come?"

"THEY ARE FILTH AND WASTE, COMMANDER! AND I DESPISE BOTH OF THOSE THINGS! AND SO THEY MUST BE DISPOSED OF IN THE MOST BRUTAL WAY, LIKE EVERY PIECE OF FILTH, SO THAT EVERYTHING REMAINS CLEAN! THOUGH THIS DESERT IS NOT THE CLEANEST AREA IN GENERAL... PERHAPS I SHOULD TRY TO CLEAN IT..."

"Miss Marsh, you are in a desert, I wouldn't say call these clean to begin with — and surely, you'd have a hard time trying to clean up the entire place!"

"IS THAT A CHALLENGE, COMMANDER? DO YOU QUESTION MY CLEANING ABILITIES? DO YOU DOUBT THAT I COULD CLEAN THIS DESERT ON MY OWN?"

She says that last part with a sense of grandiose that makes me laugh — if only because of the silliness.

"No, not at all! I just think it would perhaps take too much time for you to do so alone."

"AH, YOU ARE RIGHT. IT WOULD TAKE FAR TOO MUCH TIME... AND IT WOULD BE IMPOSSIBLE FOR ME TO DO IT ALONE — I WOULD NEED YOU WITH ME, COMMANDER."

"Me?! I'm... not exactly the neatest person, Miss Marsh."

"I KNOW."

Yep, it's the sassy side... this'll be fun...

"HOWEVER... I WOULD NOT HAVE MADE IT THIS FAR IF YOU WEREN'T HERE, COMMANDER. YOUR ABILITIES IN COMBAT ARE IMPECCABLE..."

"I... I'm not that good..."

"THIS IS INCORR —"

Suddenly, I hear this strange rumbling through the desert... I can feel it, moving through the ground... moving towards...

"Miss Marsh, look out!"

I quickly pull her to one side just before the ground splits open and a sink hole appears. From it, a creature with two large horns emerges... a Great Antlion.

I've heard of these — they dig under the ground and rise up, snatching whatever is unfortunate to be underneath, while simultaneously creating a sink hole to hide in.

They stay in these sink holes, waiting more of their prey to fall in, and once they have had their meal, they bury themselves and repeat the process.

Okay... I need to be a bit more careful.

The antlion, a little ticked off from having just missed its prey (though I can't imagine a metal robot would taste very nice), leaps out of the hole at me with its two horns.

I simply block the dive with my stick and bash it back into the hole. It prepares to do the same again, but I'm ready this time.

As soon as it leaps, I fire off a bolt of lightning with PK Thunder, frying it and sending it crawling back it it's hole, before it buries itself once more. Phew.

"... AS I WAS SAYING, YOUR EARLIER STATEMENT WAS INCORRECT AND I BELIEVE YOU JUST PROVED WHY NOW."

"Thank you... it's nice to hear that all my work is paying off."

"HM... IF ONLY YOUR COOKING WAS HALF AS GOOD AS YOUR FIGHTING WAS..."

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?"

"WELL, COMMANDER, IT WAS A THINLY VEILED INSULT AT YOUR COOKING SKILLS THAT CONSISTED OF ME REMARKING ON HOW YOUR COOKING SKILLS ARE MUCH LESS THAN HALF OF WHAT YOUR COMBAT SKILLS ARE, WITH THE SUBTLE HINT THAT YOU PERHAPS NEED TO PUT IN SOME MORE EFFORT."

Somehow, her ignoring the sarcasm and properly answering my question just made it all the worse.

"Am I really that bad of a cook?"

"NO... NO, NO... NOT AT ALL... I... THAT WAS INSENSITIVE OF ME... I... I APOLOGISE, IT WAS NOT RIGHT FOR ME TO SAY THAT. I... I THINK... THAT WHILE COOKING MAY NEVER BE SOMETHING YOU CAN DO AS WELL AS FIGHTING, YOU ARE... YOU ARE A EXCELLENT COOK, COMMANDER.

She pauses here, as if to take a breath.

"I... I FEEL THAT I HAVE PERHAPS BEEN TOO HARSH ON YOU THROUGHOUT THESE PASS FEW MONTHS... IN PARTICULAR, DURING THAT PIZZA INCIDENT."

"Oh... I won't forget that anytime soon."

"NEITHER WILL I. I WAS VERY MAD AT YOU AT THE TIME — IT TOOK ME A VERY LONG TIME TO SCRUB THE OVEN AFTER THAT! BUT... THAT DID NOT JUSTIFY MY ANGER AT YOU... AND I APOLOGISE... I HOPE YOU ACCEPT."

"Of, of course I do! You don't need to apologise, you were just trying to help! And, perhaps a little frustration is warranted when you're working with someone as unskilled as me..."

She shakes her head at this.

"I DISAGREE WITH THAT ASSESSMENT OF YOUR SKILLS. YOU HAVE PREPARED MANY DISHES FLAWLESSLY. YOU HAVE MASTERED MANY RECIPES, SOME OF WHICH ARE EXCEPTIONALLY DIFFICULT. AND, DESPITE YOUR CONCERNS, YOU HAVE NEVER SET A DROP OF WATER ON FIRE."

"Miss Marsh..."

"YOU ARE A PERSON OF MANY TALENTS, COMMANDER... I THINK YOU SHOULD BE VERY PROUD OF THAT."

"Miss Marsh... I... you know... if Master Porky ever asked how I became such a good cook, do you know what I'll say?"

She looks at me with curious eyes.

"I'll say, 'it's all because I had an excellent teacher!' Let's keep going then — this desert won't clean itself!"

"BY... BY YOUR LEAD, COMMANDER."

It takes about half an hour or so, but soon enough we reach the end of the desert, and the facility in question. Alright... woah... what is that?!

There's a strange creature here... it seems like a dog of sorts... no, not a dog, a wolf, I think. But the strange thing about it, is that it has a cactus on its head. In fact...

_"Nwehehehe! I am truly the strongest! I've mastered powers you could never hope to! I even fought a Cactus Wolf alone and won!"_

I remember Fassad one day boasted about beating a Cactus Wolf, which this creature seems to be. Well, the name certainly fits.

When we try to get into the facility, it growls at us.... evidently, we're not getting by it without a fight.

"Stay back, Miss Marsh... I will handle this."

I've never come across this creature before... let's see what we have exactly.

_"Name: Cactus Wolf"_

_'These ferocious creatures were wolves that evolved to grow a cactus on their heads — it is believed that they help the wolf retain water, which is supported by the fact that they are most commonly found in the Death Desert.'_

_Cactus Wolves are known as the kings of the desert, because of how strong they are. Approach with caution._

_Weakness: None recorded._

Oh well, that's just great, isn't it — they have no weakness!

All right then... if it doesn't have a weakness, I'll give it one.

"Defense Down Alpha."

A field of blue particles encircles the wolf before plunging downwards on it... that should makes things easier.

However, doing so has startled it... it starts growling very loudly and as I approach the wolf, it growls more and more. When I'm near it, it lunges, but I'm able to quickly move out the way and slam my stick into it as hard as I can.

It growls in pain before spinning and trying to headbutt me with its cactus head. I use my stick to block it — ow! There's something sticking into me...

Ow... the spines of the cactus... they got stuck into my arm. I don't really have a way of dealing with these so I hope they aren't poisonous.

I back away, and get rid of a few of the spines... the wolf growls and charges again but this time I step to one side and it slams into the metal doors behind me, so I take the opportunity to bash it some more with my stick. Soon, it falls to the ground in defeat.

"Okay, now we can go ins — AHH!"

Suddenly, I'm on the ground... the wolf still has fight in him and he's got me pinned down. He opens his mouth... is he going to take a bite out of me?!

I brace myself...

_Clang!_

What the... 

The wolf gives a terrible cry of pain... when I look, I see he's chomped down on Miss Marsh's claw!

The wolf lets go of it, but Miss Marsh takes the opportunity to bash it some more. Still, the wolf is persistent and refuses to get off... but I have the perfect solution.

I quickly change my other hand into an arm cannon and fire directly at the wolf's face — it sends him flying away into a cliff.

Okay, enough messing around. Let's finish this.

I focus my mind and feel that familiar sensation, the hairs on my skin standing on their ends, the air around me becoming charged, the energy coursing through me, stronger than ever.

"PK Thunder Beta!"

Two lightning bolts crash down the wolf's cactus head in quick succession, singing parts of it and shocking the wolf. With one last groan, it finally falls to the ground, slumping over in pain and exhaustion.

Finally.

"Phew, I see they are called the kings of the desert... they certainly are vicious."

"INDEED. COMMANDER, YOU HAVE SUSTAINED SOME INJURIES... HERE, LET ME HELP YOU."

She takes my arm and gently pulls the rest of the spines out and then... her hands, no, her fingers seem to open up, into these nozzles, which release this spray on my wounds and they start to heal... that's amazing!

"Thank you... not just for this, but for your help back there."

"YOU HAVE PROTECTED ME DURING OUR JOURNEY HERE, COMMANDER... IT WAS MY TURN TO DO THE SAME."

I walk over to the unconscious wolf... is it... alive? Did I kill it?!

"Miss Marsh... does the wolf... is it still alive?"

"HM... YES... I AM STILL RECORDING A HEARTBEAT FROM IT... IT IS A BIT SLOWER THAN WHAT IS NORMAL, BUT THAT IS TO BE EXPECTED CONSIDERING ITS CONDITION."

Phew... it may have attacked us first, but even still... there's still no sense in killing it — we'd be no better then... them.

"Miss Marsh, how does your heart monitor work?"

"IT IS A RATHER ADVANCED PIECE OF TECHNOLOGY, IT MEASURES THE RATE AT WHICH THE VALVES IN A HEART OPEN AND CLOSE AT, BEFORE ANALYSING HOW FAST THEIR HEART MUST BE BEATING. IT IS MORE ACCURATE THAN THE TRADITIONAL WAY USED TO MEASURE A HEARTBEAT."

"So... what's the traditional way then?"

"YOU CAN HEAR THE VALVES CLOSING WITH YOUR EARS. I COULD SHOW YOU, IF YOU WANT ME TO."

"Sure! That sounds really cool!"

"TRY PUTTING YOUR EARS TO THE WOLF'S CHEST... DO YOU HEAR ANYTHING?"

I do... it's a bit hard to hear but I manage...

Lub... dub... lub... dub... lub... dub... it's a strange noise.... yet very soothing in a way.

"I can hear it... it's a nice sound."

"IT IS..."

"Hey, let me see if I can hear your heartbeat, Miss Marsh."

Before she can object, I sit down by her and put my ears to her chest.

"Hm... strange, I don't hear a heartbeat... but I can hear this faint buzzing..."

"I WOULD BE VERY WORRIED IF YOU _COULD_ HEAR A HEARTBEAT IN ME, COMMANDER, GIVEN THE FACT THAT I _AM_ A ROBOT."

Oh. I start to blush in embarrassment at the realisation.

So, you might be wondering why exactly I thought I'd hear a heartbeat in Miss Marsh... which, is a very good question.

The answer? I... forgot she was a robot... yes... I'm an idiot.

"Oh... but... why can I hear this faint buzzing noise inside of you?"

"IT IS MOST LIKELY MY SYSTEMS THAT YOU ARE HEARING."

"Ah... that explains it. Is it possible for me to hear my own heartbeat?"

"UNLESS YOU HAVE A STETHOSCOPE..."

She stops upon seeing my confused face.

"IT IS A DEVICE THAT ALLOWS YOU TO HEAR THE HEART MORE CLEARLY, COMMANDER. UNLESS YOU HAVE ONE, IT IS NOT POSSIBLE FOR YOU TO HEAR YOUR OWN HEART, BUT YOU CAN FEEL IT BEATING. TRY PUTTING YOUR HAND TO YOUR HEART."

I do so... and... hm, I can't feel anything... that's strange...

"I don't think it works, Miss Marsh. I can't feel anything...."

"HOW PECULIAR... MAY I TRY, COMMANDER?"

"Sure."

She sits down and nestles up besides me... she's very warm... I wonder if that's because of the heat of the desert... metal conducts heat, after all.

She places one of her hands on my heart and waits for a few moments. After that, she presses her head to my heart, trying to hear it.

"STRANGE... I CANNOT FEEL ANYTHING, AND MY AUDIAL RECEPTORS ARE NOT PICKING UP ANY SOUNDS EITHER... IT IS AS ALMOST AS IF..."

"As if what...?"

"NO... THAT CANNOT BE IT... MY HEART MONITOR IS STILL PICKING UP A HEARTBEAT."

"Can you play it?"

She nods and soon, I start to hear a noise being emitted from her mouth... it's an eerie sound... something groaning, deep within me...

It's this frantic pulsing of machinery, going... tick... tock... tick... tock... tick... tock...

Over and over again... I don't know what it is... but I know...

**It's not a heart at all.**

"What's wrong with me... why, what is that? It... it's not a heart, it can't be... why... why don't I have a heart?!"

"I... COMMANDER... YOU WERE FOUND AT THE BOTTOM OF DRAGO PLATEAU, WERE YOU NOT?"

"Yes..."

"AND YOU WERE HEAVILY INJURED, TO THE POINT OF NEEDING SURGERY TO SAVE YOURSELF WITH SEVERAL PARTS OF YOUR BODY BEING REPLACED WITH MECHANICAL EQUIVALENTS."

"Yes..."

"WHAT IF... YOUR HEART WAS REPLACED... YOUR INJURIES WERE VERY SEVERE. IS IT POSSIBLE... THAT YOUR HEART MAY BE PARTLY... OR FULLY... MECHANICAL?"

No! NO! It... IT CAN'T BE!

But... I know she's right... with all those injuries, my heart... it couldn't possibly be the same anymore.

My heart... it's not even... mine anymore... it's another piece of machinery.

How much of me is just metal? My arm... my back... my heart... and that's just what I know.

It's never really crossed my mind before, but now... I can only think of one question...

**What am I?**

I'm a child... and yet, so much of me... is just cold, heartless metal...

I don't have a heart... so, am I still alive? Or did I die... and this is just a shell, a shell of what remains?

"COMMANDER... ARE YOU ALRIGHT? YOUR HEA... YOUR RATE IS ELEVATING TO INCREDIBLY HIGH LEVELS, I ADVISE YOU STOP AND TAKE SOME DEEP BREATHS, TO CALM DO—"

"SHUT UP! Don't tell me to calm down! I'm... I'm... am I just another machine?! I... I'm just another heartless robot... with no emotion at all!"

And as soon as I say that, I _instantly_ regret it.

There's a tense silence between the two of us for what feels like... an eternity.

And then, she breaks it.

"I SEE... WELL... IF THAT IS HOW YOU SEE ME... THEN, I SUPPOSE... I CANNOT BLAME YOU... BY... BY YOUR LEAD... COMMANDER."

You _idiot_.

You just _had_ to say that, didn't you? You couldn't have just done the smart thing and listened to her, no, you just _had_ to keep going and say... _that._

And now, you've just offended one of your friends, one of your _best_ friends, who cared for you, who made you feel at home and gave you so many good memories.

I'm a terrible person, aren't I?

I want to just... crawl into a hole, and die. I didn't mean... but...

But I still said it.

I said it... and now... I've gone and alienated one of my friends... forever.

"Commander? Commander!"

What? What is it? I look around and I see myself inside a building of sorts... there's a long corridor that stretches out in the distance, with a large sphere with a large fin on the back and two jet boosters.

There's also a Pigmask Major here, who is calling for me.

I assume that I must have entered the building while I was thinking.

"Oh, my apologies... I was momentarily distracted."

"Ah, I get that sometimes. So, you and Lil' Miss Marshmallow are heading to Thunder Tower, yeah?"

"We are. I was told that there would be some form of transportation here."

"Ah, well, you've come to the right place! You can take a Pork Bean — it'll get you to the tower in no time!"

Pork Bean? I'm guessing that the machine before us is one of these Pork Beans.

"So, we are free to take one then?"

"Yeah... actually, wait, no... this is the only one left, but it needs to be refuelled and there are a few parts which need to be changed. It'll take... maybe, half an hour, so you'll need to wait. But hey, if you want, you're welcome to check out the rest of the area to kill some time."

"Very well."

I step down and walk along the corridor, taking the left exit.

In a way, I'm thankful for the extra time spent... it gives me more time to think about what I said back in the desert...

It was... insensitive. I didn't consider her feelings at all, did I?I may have many talents... but evidently... empathy isn't one of them.

I keep walking down the corridor — there's a few bugs in my way, but I just ignore them, and thankfully, they do the same in return. I'm not really in the mood to fight... anything...

Because I hurt the one person who _never_ deserved it.

Eventually, after a bit of walking, I find a dead end with a ladder... I wonder where this leads to?

I climb up, but there's something blocking the path at the top... ah, there's a handle. I grab it and pull the tiles apart, before climbing out.

I emerge out of... a grave.

Yeah, that's... not a bad omen or anything.

But, more importantly, where am I?

There's a bunch of graves around me... I assume this is a graveyard. I can see a castle to the north, as well as a number of houses to the south and finally, to the west, there's a...

A forest...

This is...

_ **(Home...)** _

It's familiar... I know this place.

_ **(Mom** **... she's still... sleeping...)** _

And then... it hits me... this is Tazmily... isn't it?

This is... home. Where I grew up. Where... my family is...

It's... a strange feeling. There's anger... yet also, a desire to find out about my past... and... something else... something I... I can't quite describe.

I... I want to explore... but I know I can't. Master Porky said I couldn't go here... and so I shouldn't be here...

So, with a heavy heart, I turn back and crawl back into the grave and when I reach the bottom... I see her.

Miss Marsh.

"COMMANDER... SO THAT'S WHERE YOU WERE. I WAS CONCERNED THAT YOU HAD DISAPPEARED."

She's still worried for me... even after what I said...

"SO... DID YOU FIND ANYTHING INTERESTING UP THERE?"

"I did. I found... Tazmily Village."

"TAZMILY... THAT IS YOUR HOME, IS IT NOT? WHERE YOU WERE BORN AND RAISED?"

"Yeah... it was."

"COMMANDER. YOU'RE SAD."

I start laughing at that — it's the bluntness and simplicity of the statement... and yet, she's completely right.

"I am."

"WHAT IS THE ISSUE?"

"It's... three things, I suppose... finding out that I may be mostly a robot... seeing my home... and... well... I, just don't know."

"...COMMANDER... I... I CANNOT SAY I KNOW HOW YOU FEEL, BECAUSE WE ARE DIFFERENT... HOWEVER, I BELIEVE YOU ARE PERHAPS PLACING TOO MUCH IMPORTANCE INTO HOW ALIVE YOU ARE."

"I CAN IMAGINE IT WOULD BE SHOCKING TO REALISE HOW MUCH OF YOU IS MACHINERY, SINCE YOU WERE ONCE VERY MUCH HUMAN. BUT... DOES THAT MATTER? YOU CAN STILL MOVE. YOU CAN STILL TALK. YOU ARE STILL ALIVE. ISN'T THAT WHAT PERHAPS MATTERS THE MOST?"

"IN TRUTH... I DO NOT KNOW... I WILL NEVER KNOW BECAUSE I AM, FOR BETTER AND WORSE, A ROBOT. BUT... I LEARNED ALL OF WHAT I SAID FROM SOMEONE WHO I BELIEVE IS VERY CLEVER AND... I TRUST THEM."

"That... really does make a lot of sense. Who did you learn that from?"

She gives a robotic laugh at that.

"YOU, COMMANDER."

"Me?!"

"YES. IRONICALLY ENOUGH, IT APPEARS YOU YOURSELF HAVE NOT REALISED THE THINGS YOU TAUGHT. HAS THE PAST EVER STOPPED YOU, COMMANDER?"

"No... I've always kept moving forwards."

"THEN, WHY SHOULD THIS STOP YOU?"

"You're right... it shouldn't."

"EXACTLY. THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF YOUR LIFE AND YOUR PAST... THEY DO NOT RULE IT... UNLESS YOU CHOOSE TO LET IT DO SO."

"Miss Marsh... you are truly amazing."

"THANK... THANK YOU... COMMANDER."

There's a silence between the two of us for about a minute before she once again breaks it.

"IF I MAY ASK... DO YOU MISS TAZMILY... YOUR HOME?"

"I've been thinking about that... and my answer is... no. I don't. And I think I know why... it's because... it _isn't_ my home. My home... my home is with you, Miss Marsh... at New Pork City. So I don't miss Tazmily... because it never _was_ my home."

"THAT'S... IT IS NICE TO HEAR THAT. I HOPE I WAS ABLE TO HELP YOU WITH YOUR DOUBTS THEN."

"You've been nothing but helpful to me... but there is still one more thing I'd like to talk to you about."

"OH? WHAT IS IT?"

"I... I want to apologise to you... for what I said earlier in the desert... about robots being heartless. It was... it was incredibly insensitive of me to say that. You are... you are one of my friends, Miss Marsh... one of my best... and... I would hate to lose you."

"I... to be honest... I'm doing this 'mission' with a great deal of reluctance, because when I complete it... you'll be gone. These past four months... I have no difficulties in saying that they have been some of the best months in my life. Still, despite all of this, I understand if you thought my comment was very offensive... and I think you would be happy to part ways..."

"COMMANDER... THAT COULD NOT POSSIBLY BE FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH.I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU WERE PERHAPS NOT THINKING AS RATIONALLY AS YOU USUALLY DO... AND I ACCEPT YOUR APOLOGY."

"Thank you... I feel much better now."

"I'M GLAD I COULD HELP. HM... PERHAPS WE SHOULD RETURN TO THE PORK BEAN... IT HAS BEEN ALMOST HALF AN HOUR."

"Yes, let's go back then."

As we make our way back, I notice that Miss Marsh starts to fall behind a little.

"Miss Marsh... are you alright?"

"I AM FINE, COMMANDER."

"Are you sure? You're lagging behind a bit."

"IT IS AN EFFORT TO CONSERVE POWER... GOING THROUGH THAT DESERT REQUIRED A CONSIDERABLE AMOUNT OF ENERGY, SO I AM TRYING TO SAVE SOME BY GOING SLOWER."

Hm... I think I have an idea — a rather fun one as well.

"Well, why don't I help you?"

"IN WHAT WAY?"

I pick her up — she's actually very light, or perhaps I'm just really strong... she feels rather nice and comfortable in my arms...

"AH! COMMANDER, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! I DEMAND YOU PUT ME DOWN!"

"Hm... well... nope!"

I take out my wings and fly off — it's been some time since I've done flown, and it feels great to stretch my wings!

By flying, the two of us quickly make our way back to the first corridor, where I grant Miss Marsh her wish and put her down.

"WELL... I SUPPOSE THAT IS ONE WAY TO GET BACK QUICKLY. IF YOU COULD, PLEASE WARN ME NEXT TIME YOU DO THAT... THOUGH I APPRECIATE THE THOUGHT."

"My apologies... I will. It was fun though to see you scared there."

"I AM A ROBOT, COMMANDER. I AM INCAPABLE OF FEELING FEAR."

"Oh? So what do you call the past minute then?"

"...A CONCERN FOR THE POSSIBILITY OF AN OUTCOME WHICH WOULD RESULT IN THE HARM OF MYSELF, YOU OR BOTH OF US."

"I believe that's called fear."

"HM... INTERESTING... I SHOULD NOT BE ABLE TO FEEL FEAR IN THIS WAY..."

"Why not? After all, if you couldn't... wouldn't you just be a heartless machine? And to quote someone I trust very much... 'THAT COULD NOT POSSIBLY BE FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH.'"

"COMMANDER... YOUR... YOUR IMPRESSIONS REQUIRE SOME WORK."

"Hey, I'm getting there! It's hard for me to imitate a girl's voice, I'm still struggling with Paula's! And, I bet you can't imitate my voice!"

She opened her mouth before...

_"And, I bet you can't imitate my voice!"_

"AS YOU WERE SAYING, COMMANDER?"

"...cheater."

While talking, we've reached the point where the Major was — he seems to have finished.

"Ah, Commander, we have finished! We can take you to Thunder Tower now — just get in from the side, and we'll take you there!"

I don't know what exactly he means — the Pork Beans are just spheres with no viable door. But I look at the side and notice a button on the side, which I press.

The side suddenly opens up... that's pretty cool. The two of us get in, along with two Pigmasks and a Major.

There's not much inside, just a few controls, and some seats so Miss Marsh and I take one.

One of the Pigmasks starts the Pork Bean and woah! This thing is fast! We speed across to the right before emerging in what looks to be a highway... it appears to be about mid afternoon.

It feels rather thrilling to be moving at these high speeds... though I don't think Miss Marsh would agree.

She's doing her best to seem fine, but I can tell the high speeds don't quite agree with her — if she weren't a robot, she'd probably be throwing up.

I gently take her by the waist and try to stabilise her as much as possible. She takes my hand and gives a look... as if to ask if it's alright.

I reply by smiling and gently squeezing her hand, sending that familiar feeling through her... and myself.

As we speed off to the Thunder Tower, I can't help but feel... sad. Because...

**I know that feeling is going to end.**   
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, 13, quite the unlucky number and indeed, Claus is rather unlucky here as he must bid goodbye to his friend/love interest. I may have gone a bit too far with Claus and Marshmallow in this chapter but as Marshmallow will be going out of focus soon, I wanted to get as much out of this as I could before that happens. 
> 
> So anyone's who familiar with Mother 3 will know that it is suggested that the Masked Man doesn't have a heart — the Magyspies suggest it metaphorically, but interestingly, the Masked Man is the only enemy in the game who does not have a heartbeat in the code of the game, suggesting that he literally, does not have a heart.
> 
> It made for a very good piece of introspection for Claus though.
> 
> Also, I was looking over the earlier chapters of this fic and I realised that Chapters 1 to 5 were all continuous — as in, each chapter followed directly off the previous one, while Chapters 6 to 12 were all disjointed, but with an overarching narrative. I kinda wanted to bring that continuous chapter style back, so the next chapter is following on from this one.
> 
> Next time, Claus scales the Thunder Tower.


	14. PSI Farewell

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claus makes his way up the Thunder Tower — but when push comes to shove, he learns a very special piece of PSI.

As we speed along the highway, I notice a number of interesting things. Every so often, there are these station with yellow pads — I believe they are recharging stations for the Pork Beans. I wonder if I could use PK Thunder to achieve the same effect.

There are also some excavators across the lands — perhaps in order to build more roads? I must wonder, _why_ exactly do you need roads — the Pork Beans levitate above the ground, so surely roads wouldn't be needed? Although, I suppose it _would_ be useful to demarcate where the Pork Beans would go, so someone doesn't accidentally get hit by them.

Considering how fast these things move at, being hit by one of these things would certainly _kill_ you.

Speaking of high speeds, the Pigmasks seem to be in an hurry, seeing as they are going at... decidedly _dangerous_ speeds. There aren't any speed limits or anything though, so I suppose it doesn't... wait a minute... there aren't any speed limits?!

Oh Pork... this _cannot_ end well...

Miss Marsh isn't faring too well either... I'm guessing the high speeds rattle her circuits a lot. She's taken to wrapping her arms around me and clinging on to me for dear life, with her eyes closed.

As we keep going, we cross over a rather large bridge above the sea. It's really beautiful, the sun setting, the sea shining... I'd love to just sit here one of these days, perhaps with a book to read...

You know, seeing the sea has just reminded me that everything here, is all on a island. I must say, it's strange that the Nowhere Islands are this large considering it's supposed to be, well,an island. I'm tempeted to say it's almost as large as Foggyland was...

On the right side, is something equally as interesting — the Thunder Tower.

It's very tall — over 200 meters, if I recall. Most of the building is a vertical column, reinforced by metal bars. The top is the most interesting part though — it's a large yellow sphere...

With a giant _laser_ on top of it!

What in the name of... things, is _that?!_ Why is there a giant laser on top of the tower?! This... has gotten very interesting.

"Miss..." Actually... hm... I'm not sure why but... I don't think I should refer to Miss Marsh as such in front of the other Pigmasks. Granted, most of them preoccupied with other things but... best to be safe, I suppose.

"Lil' Miss Marshmallow?"

She doesn't seem to notice that I've said anything... strange, every other time I've asked her anything, she's immediately responded to my question. Although, she isn't exactly in the best of shape right now.

"OH, CO, COMMANDER... MY, MY APOLOGIES, I, I DID NOT REALISE YOU WERE REFERRING TO ME... WHAT WAS YOUR QUESTION?"

"I was wondering... do you know why there is a giant laser on top of the tower?"

"HM... AN INTRI, INTRIGUING QUESTION... MY DA, DA, DATA BANKS INDICATE THAT THE PURPOSE OF THE THUNDER TOWER WAS FOR THE INCREASED PRO, PRODUCTION OF ELECTRICITY... I, I THEREFORE SEE NO USE FOR SUCH A DEVICE. I APOLOGISE FOR, FOR BEING UNABLE TO PROVIDE YOU WITH MORE INFORMATION, COMMANDER."

I'm tempted to push a little further, but one look at her and I immediately decide not to. She doesn't seem to be coping well at all. Poor thing.

As we go through several dark caves, we also pass what looks to be a cafe — though it doesn't look like the cleanest of areas. There's also these strange machines that have 4 wheels on them, and this metal shell on top of them. They appear to be land based... so I suppose that _would_ justify the roads.

But then again, why exactly do you need something land based? Aren't the Pork Beans superior in every way, seeing as they levitate and all?

Still, the cafe isn't the filthiest part of the area — soon after, we pass what looks to be a rubbish heap which is rife with all sorts of junk and rubbish. Among the trash, I can see what looks to be a broken Instant Revitalising Device, a Pork Bean (I wonder if it crashed because it was going too fast) and... that's strange...

There's a broken machine here — yeah, that doesn't _sound_ interesting, seeing as this is a trash heap and all, but it's the _type_ of broken machine that's interesting. It's a device that has a number of buttons on it, and a small card shaped slot on it. It's a device that I've never seen before in real life.

Key word being, in _real_ life.

Because I have seen this machine before, and I know what it is — it's an ATM.

But I've only seen it... in _Earthbound._

I've never seen an ATM in real life and the currency they used in Earthbound is much different..._ 'dollars'_, was it? I had therefore assumed that ATMs were a invention of the past, and therefore shouldn't exist now, because of, oh, I don't know, THE APOCALYPSE!

Now I'm even _more_ confused... things aren't making sense at _all_...

I don't have much time to dwell on the fact though, since, we make a turn, and soon enough... we reach the Thunder Tower. Up close it's perhaps even more imposing and threatening then from a distance.

The Pork Bean slows down, soon coming completely to a halt before the Major addresses the two of us.

"Right, we're here, Commander! The glorious Tower of Peace and Love! The Thunder Tower!"

Tower of Peace and Love? Interesting name...

"Thank you for taking us here."

"Nah, it's no problem. It's nice to get out of the underground and drive around in the Pork Beans. Word of advice, Commander, if this whole Commander thing doesn't work out for you for some reason, then I advice you not to take a job at the Candaum Underpass. You may very well die of _boredom_."

"What exactly is the Candaum Underpass for anyway?"

"Oh well, it's just a way of connecting the Death Desert and the Highway together, as well as Tazmily Village."

Yes, I've been meaning to ask about that last one.

"Why exactly do you have a passage to Tazmily Village?"

"Between you and me, Commander, it was installed for quick travel but also as a secret passage, one that the people in Tazmily are unaware of, and would never think of looking at, since it's under a grave, and few would risk disrespecting the dead."

"So this lets you sneak into Tazmily without anyone being able to detect you... but what for?"

"I'm not actually sure... but I heard all sorts of rumours. Some say we're gonna use it to sneak into the place and then kill everyone in there, as revenge. Then, we'll build a new city there, a new utopia for us to live."

Kill _everyone_ there?! That's... well... I'm not sure _what_ to think. On one hand, I feel a sense of... joy and justice, at the idea, for there are many in Tazmily who deserve swift _death_.

On the other hand, I cannot help but feel that this is... unfair, to those who are young... they don't deserve to die, do they? No, their lives could be changed, as mine was. But if they are killed... then... that gives them _no_ chance of changing, doesn't it?

"But that's not the only rumour I've heard — I've also heard that Fassad's already in Tazmily and is attempting some sort of negotiations with the people there."

Now that's very interesting. Negotiations? If I recall, the negotiations failed last time Fassad tried. But he's _still_ trying again? Hm... Fassad seems very interested in Tazmily. I'm not sure what exactly to make of that.

"Interesting... I suppose the only person who truly knows is the King then."

"Yeah. But there's no point talking about rumours and uncertainties like this. We'd love to stick around but unfortunately we've gotta go, so see ya, Commander!"

The Major opens the door, letting Miss Marsh and myself leave. Miss Marsh still seems a little rattled from the journey so I (literally) give her a hand, and help her get out of the Pork Bean.

On the walls next to the building are a few signs which point to some areas near the tower — the most interesting one being the one pointing east... to Saturn Valley?

I'm honestly really tempted to keep going east just out of curiosity, but, alas, I can't — I have a duty and all.

Either way, the two of us enter through the metal doors and finally enter the tower.

Inside is... wow! The place is rather interesting — there's all sorts of wires and pipes extending of the walls, as well as these barrels in the ground. There are also some screens and windows on the walls, which are a rather pretty light blue.

However, the light blue maid with me still isn't feeling too all that well — she's wobbling quite a bit.

"I... I... AH, COMMANDER... IF YOU WOULDN'T MIND, MAY I HAVE A MOMENT TO GATHER MY BEARINGS... I AM RATHER DIZZY FROM THAT JOURNEY..."

"Of course. Why don't you sit down?"

"YES... I THINK I WILL... THANK YOU, COMMANDER..."

There's a bench nearby, so she makes her way over to it before sitting down, and I decide to sit down by her.

"So, high speeds don't agree with you then?"

"NO... THEY DISRUPT MY SOURCES OF POWER AND CAN EVEN DAMAGE THE INSIDE OF MY BODY."

"Why?"

"THE LEVITATION TECHNOLOGY ON THE PORK BEANS IS NOT PERFECT. IT ALLOWS A PORK BEAN TO FLOAT ABOVE THE GROUND BUT THEY ARE STILL AFFECTED BY THE TERRAIN, WHICH IS RATHER BUMPY. "

"I... WASN'T EXACTLY BUILT TO BE THE MOST DURABLE, AS I AM NOT PRIMARILY A COMBAT ROBOT, AND MY SYSTEMS ARE THEREFORE SOMEWHAT DELICATE... HOW MUCH OF THAT DID YOU ACTUALLY UNDERSTAND, COMMANDER?"

"Well... only a little but, but that doesn't matter to me — I'm just glad to hear you properly speak again! You were built for... well, you're multi purpose, aren't you?"

"INDEED. I WAS BUILT FOR VERSATILITY, ABLE TO EXERT A RANGE OF FORCES, UP TO 3000 NEWTONS OF FORCE."

"3000 — that's a _lot!_ What could you do with that much force?"

"WELL... I COULD BREAK CONCRETE IN TWO, BEND STEEL, LIFT UP TO 305.8 KILOGRAMS AND BREAK ALL 27 BONES IN YOUR HAND."

"_All_ the bones in my hand?! You can really do that?!"

"WELL, WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO DEMONSTRATE?"

"I'll pass... I quite like the bones in my hand..."

"AS YOU WISH. YET AT THE SAME TIME, I'M DELICATE ENOUGH TO MAKE A CUP OF TEA, PREPARE A MEAL AND HOLD YOUR HAND WITHOUT MUTILATING IT."

"And of course, there's all the different things you can do as well."

"INDEED. COOKING, CLEANING, REPAIRS, BATTLE..."

"And a great friend! You really are the whole package, aren't you?"

"WELL... I WOULDN'T SAY I'M A _GOOD_ FRIEND, COMMANDER..."

"And I would agree with you. You are _not_ a good friend. You are an _excellent_ friend."

"... COMMANDER... IT IS... NATURAL FOR HUMAN BEINGS TO CARE FOR ONE ANOTHER, BECAUSE ONCE THEY DIE... THEY CANNOT BE BROUGHT BACK. BUT IF I WERE TO BE DESTROYED, SO LONG AS MY MEMORY CHIP IS STILL INTACT... I COULD SIMPLY BE REBUILT. SO... IF I MAY ASK, WHY DO YOU CARE ABOUT ME?"

"Let me ask you ask a question — why _shouldn't_ I care for you, Miss Marsh?"

She's silent at that one. It appears I've stumped her.

"I... I BELIEVE I AM READY TO PROCEED. SHALL WE?"

"Sure."

The two of us start making our way through the various rooms, passing various Pigmasks, who greet us, and kindly point us in the right direction. The two of us keep going until we stumble into a particularly large room, with a giant capsule in the centre of the room, and inside it is a massive ship.

It looks like one of the Porkships... except it's _much_ bigger. It's rather wide, with the Pigmask insignia on the front of the ship, and a number of lasers fitted into the sides. I must say, it's quite the technological accomplishment!

Of course, it's not the only thing here — there's a large number of Pigmask Captains, a few Majors and a Colonel. One of the Majors turns and notices us.

"Hey... is that the Commander?"

At that, the Colonel turns as well.

"Hey, it is! Everyone, take five. Commander, it's good to see you again! And, Lil' Miss Marshmallow, nice to see you again as well."

Again? We've _both_ seen this Colonel before? I start thinking, and then it hits me...

"I apologise if I'm mistaken... but I take it you are the Colonel I assisted during the construction of Mr Genator and Lil' Miss Marshmallow?"

"AH, YES. YOU WERE THE PERSON WHO ACTIVATED ME."

"Yep! I'm actually surprised you both remembered. So, what brings you the two of you to the Thunder Tower?"

"I am here to visit the tower and His Highness."

"WHILE I AM HERE TO BE STATIONED AT MY INTENDED POST — HIS HIGHNESS'S PLAYROOM, WITH THE COMMANDER HERE TO ESCORT ME."

"Escort you? But you could just fl... oh, wait, you can't. So... have you two come all the way from the Death Desert then?"

"Indeed."

"Woah. The two of you have come a long way, haven't you — that's very impressive. And it doesn't look like you two are any worse for wear."

"INDEED. THE COMMANDER HAS DONE A VERY GOOD JOB OF FENDING OFF THE CREATURES WE'VE MET."

"So, Colonel, why are you here then? Last time I saw you you were on the 57th floor of the Empire Pork Building."

"As it happens, we were doing some work there, but we needed to go to Thunder Tower to get some parts and stuff, so we could make some adjustments to this."

She points to the Porkship behind her.

"I take it this ship is for special use then. High ranking officials, I imagine?"

"Indeed — this is the Mother Porkship, the largest and most powerful Porkship we have. We only use it for important missions and such. For that reason, it's equipped with improved defences and weaponry compared to all the other Porkships."

"It must be incredibly durable then."

"It is... but unfortunately, it isn't banana proof, which doesn't help given that _Fassad_ likes to use this a lot."

She lowers her voice. "Between you and me, I hope to the Dark Dragon that you really _do_ become the Commander. I _detest_ that man with every fibre of my being."

"I share your sentiments. I must wonder, why exactly is he _still_ with this army, if _everyone_ seems to dislike him to such a large extent?"

"I wonder the same thing. The king must find him _really_ useful, I suppose."

I was hoping for some insight into why Fassad is still here, but the Colonel's sentiments seem to match my own.

"Hm. In any case, what modifications are you making to this ship then?"

"Making it faster."

Okay, that gets a laugh out of me.

"Well, that certainly is important."

"Yep. Its size makes it difficult though. Adding boosters just adds to the load, cancelling out the added speed."

"AND METAL OF A LIGHTER DENSITY WOULD COMPROMISE ITS DURABILITY."

"Indeed, Lil' Miss Marshmallow. It's quite the issue. Do either of you have any suggestions then?"

"What about energy based weaponry? You'd need less ammunition overall."

"Haha, we already did that actually! Though, we need more energy and that's actually why we're at Thunder Tower. We've developed these robotic batteries here, which can store and generate their own electricity, which we can use to power the weapons.

"Well... what about making it more aerodynamic? You could also try putting some wings or something, so you don't need to use as much fuel to keep it at a constant altitude."

"Hm.... that's quite the good idea actually. I'll have to look into that one. Thank you for your help."

She writes this down and I think I see her draw a brief sketch of what it should look like.

"You know, seeing as this ship is for high ranking members of the Pigmask Army, maybe you'll get to ride in it one day, Commander!"

"If I become Commander."

"That's a big if. At the rate you're going, I'd be very surprised if you're don't become Commander. I look forward to working with you one day!"

"Thank you for your confidence, but I still believe it is somewhat premature."

"Well, as you wish. If you're looking for His Highness, you'll need to keep going up, all the way up the scaffolding — be careful not to fall off though!"

"The two of us will get going then."

"Actually, Lil' Miss Marshmallow can't go there now — we need to recharge her and get her registered with the security in the Thunder Tower."

"SO WHERE DO I NEED TO GO THEN?"

"There's a room in the north east — you'll need to head straight down, through the next room, head straight up, then up the stairs and to the right. From there, head down to get to the elevator that leads to the scaffolding.

"Lil' Miss Marshmallow will need to head to the right instead though — there's a room over there where you'll find some more Pigmasks and they'll get her sorted."

"There is one thing though... we've had a few issues with some of the things in the tower. You've heard of the storms, right?"

"Yes."

"Ironically enough, a few weeks ago, some lightning struck the tower, which caused a power outage... and also some malfunctions in some of the robots here. They've gotten loose and are running rampant around the tower. They're not all that tough, but I thought I should warn you. So, yeah, be careful if you run into any of them."

"We will. Thank you for the directions and the warning. Well, the two of us will get going."

The two of us start walking off but as we do, I have this sudden... _curiosity_ that I feel the need to be satisfied.

"If I may ask, Colonel... what is your name?"

"My name? Colonel Rysan."

Hm. I'll have to remember that.

"So... we're not quite out of the woods yet... so to speak. We may very well run into more opposition..."

"YOU SOUND NERVOUS, COMMANDER. DON'T BE."

"It's not _quite_ as easy as that, Miss Marsh."

"NO. IT IS EVEN _EASIER_. IT'S QUITE SIMPLE — YOU ARE STRONGER THEN ANYTHING IN THIS TOWER. EVERYTHING SHOULD BE NERVOUS OF YOU."

"That's quite the bold statement... how can you be so sure in it?"

"I... I AM NOT QUITE SURE... I KNOW IT IS TRUE. I MAY NOT KNOW WHY. BUT I _KNOW_ IT IS TRUE. I SUPPOSE WHAT YOU COULD SAY IS... I... BELIEVE IN YOU, COMMANDER... AND I THINK YOU SHOULD DO THE SAME..."

"I... well, if _you_ believe in me, Miss Marsh... then perhaps... I can as well. Let's get going."

The two of us navigate through this first room, and head through to the next o — WHAT THE HELL!

So, inside, are a bunch of batteries. What's so strange about that?

Well... the fact that they are all _moving!_

"AH... EVIDENTLY, THE COLONEL WAS NOT LYING WHEN SHE SAID A FEW OF THE ROBOTS HAD GOTTEN LOOSE..."

A _few_... would be an understatement. There's about... let's see, one, three, six, ten, _fifteen_ of these walking batteries! In addition, there are also five or so of these larger robots with a green screen and two drills for hands.

So then, we're disadvantaged in terms of numbers by a factor of ten. But do you know what?

It doesn't matter at_ all._

"Ready, Miss Marsh?"

"READY WHEN YOU ARE, COMMANDER."

The batteries and robots all turn towards us, as if they know what's about to happen next. And then...

They pounce.

And suddenly it's a _giant_ brawl, robots flinging their arms madly, batteries dive bombing us with electrified drop kicks, all while the two of us are in the centre of it all... and we aren't exactly faring the best and — OH PORK!

One of the robots has suddenly grabbed me with both of his arms... its grip is very strong. Please don't throw me, please don't throw me, _please_ don't throw m — OH, COME ON!

Guess what? It _threw_ me.

Thankfully, I hit the wall back first — that doesn't sound good, but my back has some metal armour there along with my wings, as opposed to my head, which doesn't have _any_ sort of protection at all.

Huh. You know, it might be nice to have some sort of protection for my head... perhaps something like a helmet?

That's neither here nor there, right now, these robots _need_ to be dismantled.

A bunch of these batteries are starting to surround me, so I spin with my stick to knock them away. They get up and charge me once again, this time electrifying themselves before diving at me. My stick serves me very well here though, as I use it to block each of them — wood's a very good insulator of electricity, so they harmlessly bounce off, before I kick them away.

Guess what happens _next_? Yeah, they get up again and charge me _again_.

I'm confused — they don't look very durable and yet they seem to be able to cope with anything.

And Miss Marsh isn't doing much better either — the batteries are very small and quick, so they easily evade her claw. And she can't handle electricity all that well, as she is also a robot.

Hm. Well, let's think about this... Miss Marsh is by no means as fast as me, but she is stronger — she's able to exert up to 3000 Newtons of force, after all!

So... it would make sense if she took on something slower... like the robots, and I can take care of the batteries because I have experience fighting large numbers of targets! Yes, that works perfectly.

"Miss Marsh! Focus on the robots, you're better equipped to take them on!"

"IF YOU SAY SO, COMMANDER."

She switches to fighting the robots and yeah, she's certainly doing a lot better. The robots are slower, and Miss Marsh has an advantage in terms of range, thanks to her claw. She doesn't throw the robots though, I imagine not because she can't, but because doing so risks damaging the tower.

That just leaves me with the fifteen batteries. Okay. It's just like fighting Pigmasks or Octobots. I've got this!

I isolate each of the batteries and easily manage to knock them all down... but they just keep getting back up! Surely, they should be running out of energy?

Oh, I'm an idiot — they're batteries! They'll have tons of energy inside of them! Okay, I need to drain them of their energy then.

"Hey, batteries! Is that all you've got?"

In hindsight, I'm not sure _why_ I thought they would actually understand me.

They don't actually understand me, but they _do_ seem to understand the intention of the words. They line up and then discharge arching bolts of electricity, using themselves as a conductor.

Still, I'm prepared and roll out of the way.

Hm, I must admit I'm rather jealous — I've been trying to do something similar to that with PK Thunder, though I haven't been very successful. I haven't tried using something as a conductor though, have I?

I _could_ use myself like these things are, but electrocuting myself every time I use that doesn't seem like a good idea. A weapon then? Well, sticks don't exactly conduct electricity very well, so that's out... ah, forget that, _focus!_ Focus on the _battle!_

Anyway, soon enough, the batteries start running a little dry, and that's when I take the opportunity to stomp and smash them into submission.

Miss Marsh is also doing well. She's taken to grabbing the robots with her claw and then using her drill to unscrew and dismantle the robots — I must admit, that's _very_ clever!

Now one of the batteries seem to be running away from me towards... the robots? They're heading towards some of the inactive robots, and then now they're... well, what are they doing?

Suddenly, one of the inactive robots springs back to life! How on Earth is that... oh, I see... they're sacrificing themselves to re - energise the robots. Okay, that's also pretty clever, but this is just gonna get annoying if they keep doing that.

Thankfully, there's a simple answer to this little problem — simply make sure the batteries can't reach the robots, which I'm able to do fairly well. Occasionally, I also get the opportunity to assist Miss Marsh by firing off a few bolts of PK Thunder at the robots — they're made of metal, and they can't absorb it, like the batteries, so it works fairly well against them.

Still, these batteries just won't go down! They are really persistent! I could lower their defences, but here's the thing — there's 14 of them and Defence Down only works on _one_ thing at a time. Plus, since they're moving about like a hyperactive child who has a bucket of sugar, it would be impossible to keep track of which one I've targeted.

If only I was more, more... _powerful_.

Still, with enough perseverance, I'm eventually able to take care of 6 of the batteries. The remaining batteries seem to become aware of the threat, and... well, they seem to be lining up for some reason. Why? Well, they've started... rubbing against one another, causing sparks to fly off...

Ah.

They're combining their electricity together.

Oh, this may not end well...

I prepare myself to dodge, and once they're finished with their song and dance, they fire an intense bolt of lightning...

... aaand, it completely misses me. Seriously, they were off by like, two feet...

And then I realise — they weren't aiming for _me!_

Miss Marsh is currently dealing with one of the robots so there's no way for her to dodge... oh... I can tell I'm gonna regret this. So with that, I dive in front of the lightning bolt...

ARRGH!!!

It's _pain_... like nothing else... it's like every muscle, every bone, have all been set on this fire at the same time... and there's no way to douse it... just... just let it _stop_...

"COMMANDER! COMMANDER!"

I think... I think I can hear Miss Marsh speaking to me... maybe? Her words seem rather... faint...

She'll be... alright...

Yeah, she'll do... just fine...

But... no... no... no, she _won't!_

I can't... leave her alone... I... must keep... going!

With a heavy effort, I... I, I wrench myself away from the claw of unconsciousness. I can see Miss Marsh above me surrounded by batteries, who are assaulting her with electricity, while the robots are pounding her...

When I... when I look at myself, I can see so many, so many, burn marks on me... but I must keep going on...

I get up and see a robot approaching Miss Marsh. With... with a heavy... effort, I concentrate and feel the lightning through me... or is that just the numb feeling of paralysis?

"PK... Thu.. _Thunder!"_

A single lightning bolt strikes the robot but it's _incredibly_ weak, just barely enough to phase it and send it back a few feet.

"COMMANDER! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?! YOU CANNOT FIGHT LIKE THIS ANYMORE!"

"No... I will still fight..."

"THEN, YOU WILL DIE TRYING! YOU'RE NOT STRONG ENOUGH TO TAKE ALL OF THESE FOES ALONE!"

"You're right... I'm not... so it's a good thing... that I don't intend to fight them alone."

"...WHAT?"

"You see... for how strong I may be... there's one... one kind of strength, that I know of... but I could never... never truly understand. Until _now_..."

"...COMMNADER..."

"You see, it's a _force_. It's a force within every person. It's a force that burns deep within every person, no matter what. But this force... this force can't be measured."

And I can feel it, flowing through me. It's more powerful then anything I've felt before, this force... it's... more powerful then any bolt of lightning could ever _hope_ to be!

"Because... it's a feeling. It's a feeling which... which I felt many times... but I didn't _understand_ it. It's what I feel towards the Pigmasks in my regiment, and the Fierce Pork Trooper. It's what I feel towards Master Porky, who has given me life and purpose! And... it's what I feel towards... towards you... _you_, Miss Marsh!"

I can feel it on my fingers, the words on the tip of my tongue... I know what it is, I _know!_ It's...

"It's the most powerful thing in the world!"

"... COMMANDER... I... I..."

It's...

_"PK LOVE ALPHA!"_

There's a giant, multi coloured explosion in the room. When it clears, everything's... _down_. All the batteries, all the robots... they're all... on the floor.

"COMMANDER... HOW... HOW... I, I, I DON'T UNDERSTAND... HOW DID YOU..."

But with that, I finally succumb, and join the machines on the ground.

"COMMANDER! HERE... I WILL HELP YOU..."

Once again, she uses her special nozzles, which manage to heal my burns... they really _are_ impressive...

"Thank you, Miss Marsh... thank you..."

"COMMANDER... WHAT ON EARTH WERE YOU THINKING..."

"I don't know... but it, it _worked_..."

"YES... BUT... PLEASE DO NOT SOMETHING LIKE THAT AGAIN THOUGH. HOW DID YOU DO THAT?"

"I... it just, happened, I suppose..."

"HM... MY DATA BANKS HAVE NO RECORD OF THAT PSI YOU JUST USED... PK LOVE, WAS IT?"

"Yes..."

Wait a minute... PK _Love_... that's... that's _the_... _isn't it?_ Oh... I _definitely_ need to talk to Master Porky about this.

"I'm not sure... how... but... I will inform His Highness about this. If you... if you wouldn't mind, could you keep this... a secret?"

"IF... IF THAT IS WHAT YOU WANT..."

"Thank you... let's keep going then."

So, we keep going into the next room, where there are two exits... one to the right... and... one to the south.

"So then this is.... where we... part ways."

"YES... BUT... WHY DON'T I COME WITH YOU, COMMANDER... AT LEAST UNTIL YOU REACH THE SCAFFOLDING... AFTER ALL, YOU MIGHT, WELL, YOU MIGHT GET LOST OR, OR, YOU MIGHT RUN INTO MORE ROBOTS, AND I COULD HELP YOU."

"Are... are you sure?"

"I... I AM."

The two of us continue to the south, hand in hand. Thankfully, there aren't any robots here. There's a ladder at the top of the room... I presume that leads to the scaffolding.

I walk as slowly as possible... because I don't want to get to the end. I'm.. I'm sure Miss Marsh is aware of how slow I'm going as well, but she doesn't point it out... for which I'm eternally grateful to her for.

As we climb up, I notice a section of the area with a DCMC banner and a couple of figurines of the various DCMC band members... I wonder if the Fierce Pork Trooper has a hand in this.

Still, there's no delaying the inevitable, and eventually... we reach the ladder.

"So... this is it, then."

"INDEED. I WILL... NOT BE SEEING YOU THEN. AS I WILL... NO LONGER BE AT NEW PORK CITY, IT FALLS ON YOU NOW, COMMANDER, TO PROVIDE MEALS FOR HIS HIGHNESS... BUT I BELIEVE YOU WILL DO JUST FINE.... BECAUSE YOU REALLY HAVE BECOME... AN EXCELLENT COOK."

"Well, I had an excellent teacher... the best. You'll be... safe here, won't you?"

"I... I'M AFRAID I CANNOT SAY. PART OF MY FUNCTIONS ARE AS A COMBAT ROBOT. IT IS POSSIBLE I MAY RUN INTO A SITUATION THAT REQUIRES ME TO FIGHT, AND HENCE... IS NOT SAFE."

"Yes... I suppose, you can't say that. Miss Marsh... can you... can you promise me something then?"

"OF COURSE. WHAT IS IT?"

"Just... be careful, okay? Just, stay as safe as you can."

"...I WILL DO MY BEST, COMMANDER."

"Thank you."

There's another one of those awkward silences between the two of us again, with Miss Marsh once again being the one to break it.

"COMMANDER... DO YOU THINK YOU COULD... WELL... WHY DON'T YOU... VISIT THE TOWER, ONCE IN A WHILE? IT WOULD BE A GOOD WAY TO... MONITOR THE AREA, AND HIS HIGHNESS MAY NOT BE ABLE TO VISIT THE TOWER AT SOME TIMES. PERHAPS... YOU COULD ACT AS A... STAND IN FOR HIM, ON OCCASION."

She pauses here, as if contemplating her next words.

"AND WHILE YOU ARE HERE... IF YOU WANTED, YOU COULD VISIT... ME AND... ASK FOR ANY HELP THAT YOU MIGHT NEED FOR RECIPES... IF YOU ARE STRUGGLING WITH ANY."

"Wouldn't that just be an... inconvenience for you?

"PERHAPS... BUT... IT IS AN INCONVENIENCE I WOULD NOT MIND... BECAUSE... I... IT WOULD BE NICE TO SEE YOU AGAIN."

"I'd... I'd like to see you again as well. So... you should probably get going then."

"YES... YOU ARE RIGHT... BUT THERE IS ONE LAST THING I'D LIKE TO DO... HOW DID YOU... HOW DID YOU DO IT... IT WAS... NO... NOT THAT... IT WAS... THIS..."

And before I can quite comprehend exactly what she's talking about, I'm overcome by an entirely new sensation — the fact that Miss Marsh... is _hugging_ me.

It's... _lovely_... and, and, and... I don't _want_ to let go. I... I _can't!_ I can't... I _can't_...! I... I... don't... don't cry... don't cry.... don't _cry_...

Because there's no crying until the end.

I... I'm not sure how long we stayed like this... but I know... it's not long _enough_.

She lets go and start to walk away. I watch her leave... but just before she leaves the room, she turns back, and looks at me one last time.

"Goodbye... _Commander."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...yeah, this one really did hurt to write, especially that ending — I almost cried while writing it. Seriously, why isn't this ship done more, it works so well!
> 
> Writing this chapter was very interesting, since I was trying to show that Claus and Marshmallow very clearly have something deeper going on, without having to outright say it — although Claus using PK Love for the first time is as close as we get to that. 
> 
> As it happened, I actually planned that to be later in the story, in Chapter 20, but I decided to move it here, since it worked well here, and I already intend for Chapter 20 to have something big happening (foreshadowing!) so having Claus also learn PK Love... yeah, that would have been overkill.
> 
> Next time, Claus reunites with his Master.


	15. Resolve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claus finishes his accent up Thunder Tower, reuniting with his master and furthering his resolve to become the Commander.

How did I get here? I've must have gotten lost in my thoughts again.

Hahaha... ahhh... I _already_ miss her.

And... I'm not sure why. Well, I do know — she was a really good friend to me... she was kind and sweet, fun to be with, so it makes sense that I'm sad that I won't get to see her at all, or at best, not as often. But I miss her even more then I miss Master Porky, and he's my _best_ friend.

So why do I miss her _more?_

Well... I haven't actually seen Master Porky for... it's been ages, hasn't it? Yes, and I didn't live with him at all, so _obviously_ I would be less used to his presence then Miss Marsh's... yeah... that _must_ be it.

But either way... I've gotta keep going, right? Right.

I'm on the higher floors of the Thunder Tower now — these ones are the _'scaffolding'_ floors, as Colonel Rysan called them. Master Porky's room should be somewhere up here.

There's a light breeze up here, being exposed to the outside. Despite there being guard rails on all the stairs and platforms, I can't help but be scared that I'll fall off the tower and, well, it wouldn't be the _first_ time I've fallen a large distance, but I'm not exactly in a hurry to test my chances at surviving a second time.

Wait... I can _fly_... so if I just fall off... I can just fly back _up._ Yeah, that seems to a running thing today — that being me acting like a complete idiot!

Like letting her... ah, forget it...

Either way, it's probably just best to stay on solid ground.

As I climb up, I notice some of the screws seem to come to life, and jump out in front of me.

Yeah, so that should be surprising, but... I can't be bothered to be surprised. I... I just... DAMN IT!

Okay, deep breaths... deep breaths... that's what _she_ always said...

Alright. Let's try things more... optimistically.

I'm going to see Master Porky again.

And... that's gonna be fun! Yeah, it'll be fun!

The screws that do get in the way, are very easy to take out. I use a special technique I like to call 'bashing them so hard they fly off the tower', to easily dispose of them. Part of me wonders if this is safe, given the fact that, well, the screws _are_ holding the tower together. Okay, maybe I _should_ stop then.

It's not too long until I reach the end, where the only way further is a ladder that goes through a pipe. There's a sign next to the pipe... His Highness's Room? So, I've reached Master Porky's room then.

With baited eagerness, I climb the ladder, wondering what the room will be like.

And, when I enter, I have to remind myself that I'm not royalty. I accept that.

Nor do I ever want to become royalty - if Prince Poo and Master Porky are any indication, becoming royalty requires a great deal of suffering, whether it be going through arduous trials and mental suffering in the case of the former, or becoming permanently _deformed_ in the case of the latter.

Then again, I _have_ gone through a great deal of suffering and deformation myself... but that's _besides_ the point...

I say this all because of what my expectations for Master Porky's room to like are. I would have thought, it would be like a throne room. And I would think a throne room would have... a red carpet, a throne and, maybe some statues — in fact, I believe Prince Poo's throne room had all _three_ of those things.

In hindsight, I don't know why I'm surprised — Master Porky's room has exactly _none_ of those things.

It's a child's _playroom._

There's a jukebox playing a familiar song that I think I may have heard at the arcade, a star shaped hot spring in the centre, and loads of toys all around — guitars, bicycles, teddy bears, airplanes, it's got pretty much everything! The walls are decorated in white with some swirls patterned onto them. Meanwhile, the ceiling depicts a starry sky with a pink floor beneath with more stars on it.

It's... a sensory overload.

"Well then, I was wondering if you'd ever make it up here."

What the... I've been so preoccupied with looking around, that I haven't even noticed perhaps the most out of place thing in this room. In the centre of it all, is Porky in his capsule. He looks sicker and sicker by the day...

I turn towards him and bow.

"Sir."

Porky... chuckles at this for a bit before speaking.

"At ease. Ahhhh, it is rather nice to have people bow at your feet... very nice. So... I haven't seen you for... well, months. Hahahaha... you'll have to forgive me... when you get to my age, a few months is like a day. I've heard... good things about your progress."

"Yes. I have been training and have become much stronger since. I passed the test set to determine my leadership skills, and I have also gained some skill with cooking in preparation for Mi — Lil' Miss Marshmallow's leave."

"Ah yes... that robot is supposed to work here. You _did_ get it here safely, _didn't_ you?"

"I have. She is currently on the lower floors being registered in the tower's mainframe."

Porky giggles madly before continuing.

"Good! Very good! I'm pleased... things are going very well. So... how do you find this Tower of Thunder then?"

"It is... a rather impressive accomplishment. A tower so high, that can generate this much electricity. It should be very useful."

"And it will be. Oh, it will be. But that's for later. For now... I have called you here for a very special reason. A very special task, that no one else can do."

Only I can do this? Well, whatever it is, I will do my best for Master Porky!

"What is this... task then?"

"You see... I've been here for about a week, and you see... I'M SO BORED!"

He's... bored?

"And so I thought to myself, what better way to cure my boredom then to have my_ best friend_ come over? And now that you are here... let's play! To the cars!"

With that, Porky's capsule opens up and he gets out of it, before rushing over to some miniature versions of those land based vehicles I saw outside the cafe… so these are_ 'cars'_ then.

"Well? What are you waiting for?!"

I must admit, this wasn't really what I thought of when_ 'special task only I can do'_ came to mind, but hey, why not!

With that, I quickly join him and the two of us immediately start racing each other around the track with the cars. Porky's evidently played this loads, because he very easily beats me, not just once, but four times. Still, I manage to get one win in there — I think he may have been taking pity on me, but I'm grateful nonetheless.

"Woo! That was fun! What's next, what's next?! Oh, oh, let's go _in_ the car!"

Porky moves to a bigger car — these seem more like the ones that I saw, ones that you can actually _drive_ in.

The two of us try driving the car around — it's only big enough to hold one person, so we take turns, and it's quite fun to zip around the playroom like this! I struggle a bit with figuring out how you actually use it — much to Porky's amusement, I end up ramming into the walls a few times.

"Haha! You drive like my father used to!"

Porky keeps laughing, eventually transcending into a giant coughing fit, where he's forced to sit down on the floor.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah... I'll live and all... so come on! What's next? I know, let's take things to the sky!"

And so next up are the aeroplanes — using them gives a sensation similar to flying, and yet still quite different. Porky comes up with something interesting though — a race around the playroom, with him in the aeroplane, and my using my wings. It's certainly fairer then the racecars were since I've had experience flying. Porky still manages to just beat me though.

"Ahhhhh. Now I'm tired."

Porky returns back to his capsule and lies down.

"Can I have a look around the playroom?"

"Feel free. It's always nice to show off to a friend!"

I pace around the playroom, having a look at some of the toys. There's certainly a lot of them, in a multitude of colours. I wonder if Porky actually plays with them all. Over time my eyes are drawn to the hot spring.

Porky notices me staring at it and giggles.

"Haha! You know, that's only for _me_ to use. But since you _are_ my _best_ friend, I suppose I'll make a _special_ exception for you."

"Really? Thank you!"

I step into the water and relax... ahhhhhh...

It feels wonderful... all my muscles relaxing at once... it's been soo long since I've been in a hot spring...

After about 5 minutes, I get out, and move about some more. There really are a lot of toys her — AHHH!

"HAHAHAHAHA! Oh, that was perfect! That's the funniest thing I've seen in all these years! HAHAHAHAHA!"

In the middle of my pacing, I didn't quite notice a teddy bear in the ground and tripped over it. I need to be more careful... but what is this bear doing here anyway?

I pick it up... it feels rather soft, and cushy... sort of like Miss Marsh, I suppose. Its design is rather familiar... hm... ah! I believe Paula had one of these, didn't she? Though... is it the same one? No, it's likely to be a different one from Porky's time... right?

The bear itself looks rather old, the marks of time clear on it. There are some... marks still on it though... I think... they're letters? It's very hard but it looks like there were once nine letters, though most of them have faded away. I think I can make out a... an 's'... and an 'o'... and perhaps another 's' well?

The strangest thing, is that while the first four letters are evenly spaced out, the fourth and the fifth have are spaced out a bit further, and then the last five letters are spaced out evenly as well.

Put it this way, if these represented the spaces for the nine letters:

— — — — — — — — —

Then, what I see would look something like this:

S O S

— — — — — — — — —

I have this strange desire to know what it says... but I just can't make them out. Damn it!

_S... O... S..._ yeah, that seems _very_ fitting. Cause I think I need _help..._

"You seem rather interested in that bear. It's a special one, you know."

"Special?"

"Mhm. It belonged to Ness's wife. When I went back to recruit Dr Andonuts, I took something from each of Ness's friends, and Ness himself, as a... memento of them. That yo-yo there? That was from Ness himself. No one but me is allowed to touch it."

I swivel round to where Porky's pointing to. There's a glass case with a crown on top of it. Inside it is a cushion with a yo-yo on top of it. Evidently, it means a lot to Porky.

"So, do you like my throne room then?"

"It is... certainly quite a lot to take in. I didn't expect your room to be like this."

"Age of an immortal, mind of a child. I remember as a child, I didn't get many toys. We were broke after all. But now, I have all the toys I could ever want. It's amazing, isn't it? New toys come and go. They get broken or become outdated. So what do you do?"

Porky takes a... breath before continuing.

"You replace them! When your action figures break, you get a new one that's tougher, rougher and badder! But the thing I've realised is that after a while, you start getting bored of all these toys."

"So... what do you do then? Do you stop playing with the toys altogether?"

Porky starts wheezing a considerable amount of this, before braking into a cough. It take a while before he regains his composure.

"BZZT! Wrong! Like a recipe that doesn't seem right or a story that doesn't have the ending you want, you go beyond just trying to find a new one. No. You make your own. You design it and then watch it all unfold exactly as you want."

"That's what I did. I took the place where the 'story' was supposed to end for me and surpassed the _'writer'!_ The person influencing it all everything on this planet... he thought he was the one who had control all this time... hee hee hee! "

"He never noticed that, slowly, I was taking the power! He thought, that he could end it all whenever he wanted, yet he never noticed that I, Master Porky, was adding my own chapters! I became the 'writer'! And then he... died. He died! What an almighty idiot! But even then, I still kept adding my own chapters. Take a guess. Why did I do it?"

Added his own chapters? I see... you wouldn't think that you could survive an onslaught of attacks like that... but Porky_ did._ He survived where it should have ended. He extended his life to immortality. He added a new chapter... to his _life._

"Because... you weren't happy... were you? The original end to the story... was your death. And you wanted to change that."

"Exactly. Ah...my friend... you and I are so much alike. It was as if... it were destiny that we should meet. As if we were... chosen. Chosen to bring a new age. But there is no such thing as _'fate'_ and _'chosen ones_' in life. Only the idiots that delude themselves into believing they are '_chosen'_ and the _idiots_ that believe in them!"

Porky takes what I think is a breath before continuing.

"You think I was happy, when I felt was dealt all that pain and suffering, by Ness and his _'friends'?_ How they rejected me over and over and _over_ again? How I wanted to save Ness from them, only to realise I was too late... the friend I had, the only friend I had... to see him walk away... forever. _FOREVER!"_

Porky starts a violent coughing fit and starts hacking before spitting... _something_ out.

"And the stars that rained down on me, the rockets that shook my bones, the fire that burned away at my flesh and the psychedelic explosions that rocked my mind? You think I was happy for it to end with my screams of agony deafening me with that freak watching me? _NO!"_

"I could have died there. Ohhhhh... I really could have. At any point, the entire world could have just collapsed upon me and that would have been it... No one would have missed me at all. Not my abusive mother, my deadbeat father, my brother who was nothing but a waste of _skin_ and most certainly not, _Ness. Neessss..."_

There's a strange hissing in Porky's voice, and a lot... no, an _immeasurable_ amount of irritation in his eyes. He stops for some time, so I take it I'm allowed to speak, but as I open my mouth...

"Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, **_NEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!"_**

Porky is abruptly cut off by his own hacking and wheezing once again.

"My lord, I... I... I was not aware of how.... _greatly_ you... _despised_ Ness."

"Despise Ness? Oh, I don't despise Ness. I _hate_ him! I hate him with _every single fibre of my being!_ He... _abandoned _me! And yet... I _envy_ him so much..."

"But why would you envy someone like _him?"_

"It's... complicated. I remember back when I was so young, I'd look at Ness and think _'Wow, he's so cool!'._ The worst part is that I _still_ think that. Ness had _everything_. He had a mother that cared, a father that provided and supported, and a sister, who did more for him than my brother ever did."

"And, he had those friends of his... the ones who took him away from _me_. They supported him in everything that they did, and he was able to find _love_ in one of them. And he even had _children_ which everyone _adored,_ and he was in turn _adored_ by his children. How _sweet."_

"Oh, but there's more! Ness was a _psychic_. He had all these miraculous powers, and everyone thought he was _soooo_ great because of them. I thought so as well. He could do so many things... but I'll never forget that... _that_ PSI... the PSI which _he_ copied! Idiot! He couldn't even _master_ it!"

Ness... _copied_ PSI? But PSI techniques are _universal_... aren't they? Any psychic can learn any PSI technique with enough practice, so there would be no need to copy it. Unless Porky meant that Ness _stole_ PSI...

"Did... is it possible to steal PSI from a person?"

"No. PSI is innate... most psychic techniques are universal to all psychics though. Any psychic can learn PSI with practice. Well, not _any_ PSI..."

Not any PSI? Well, some PSI can't be learned very easily, such as PK Starstorm... but that's when it hits me. Porky isn't talking about PSI that can't be learned naturally, through psychic fevers — he's talking about PSI that can't be learnt at _all._

"Such as... PK Love."

"Hmm... very good. Tell me, what _do_ you know about it?"

"Not much. Only a few can learn it, who are... _'chosen'_ and the power of the attack seems to be comparable to that of PK Starstorm. And..."

Yeah, it's time, isn't it?

"And...?"

"And... I can use it."

Porky slams his hands into the sides of his capsule, before he leans up to look at me.

_"You..._ can use... PK Love...?"

"I... I can..."

"When?"

"Just about an hour ago."

"An hour?! Well then, how _exactly_ did you learn it? What happened that made you _use_ it?"

"I was travelling through this tower with Lil' Miss Marshmallow, and we encountered a group of batteries and robots, which had gotten loose from the power outage recently. The enemies outnumbered us and we were almost... defeated. In desperation... I... I... I did _that_. PK Love..."

"Interesting... soo, can you do it _now?"_

Now? Well... I suppose I could _try..._

I concentrate like when I use PK Thunder, and then...

"PK Love Alpha!"

... aaand nothing happens.

"Strange... let me... let me try that again. PK Love Alpha!"

And nothing happened _again._

"Why... why isn't this working?!"

I try three more times, and nothing happens all three times. I... I don't _understand!_

"Enough. It's not gonna work."

"But... I... I... I swear it... it must seem like I'm lying, but I'm not, I swear!"

"I believe you."

"You... you do?"

"Mhm. And I'm sure the robot will corroborate your story as well. And so, I must give you an order. It's a very important one."

"What... what is it?"

"DO NOT TELL ANYONE ABOUT THIS!"

"Wha... why not?"

Porky gives this sigh before answering.

"Ohhh... I really wish I could tell you. And I will. I promise I will, in the future. But for now... let's just say, that it's important that as few people know about this... _power,_ as possible. PK Love is very... _special._.. and in the future, it will be _very_ important.

"But if... _they_, knew that you had this power... things could go horribly wrong. So it is important no one else knows. And because of that, I must ask that you refrain from using PK Love at all. Unless... Hm... well... how are you doing with your PSI?"

"Well... not much... I have learned Defence Down and the next level of PK Thunder. It's... not much though..."

"Hm... considering that you have learned PK Love... perhaps... it is time for you to focus on more on your mind, as opposed to your body."

"What do you mean?"

"You were having cooking lessons with the robot in the afternoons, right?"

"Indeed."

"Well, now, you'll no longer be having them. But instead of returning to your regular training, in the afternoons, I'd like you to spend some time with our psychic expert."

"Psychic expert? You don't mean..."

"Yes. Fassad. He knows perhaps more about PK Love then even _I_ do. For that reason, I'm entrusting you to him, so that you can develop this power. In fact, I'll append my previous request — you can inform Fassad about this, and you may use PK Love under his supervision. But nowhere else."

Oh... oh _no_... I... I have to do training... with _Fassad_... oh no...

Okay... okay... alright... think of the upside! I'll become stronger, since Fassad _is_ a powerful psychic. And hey, at least I get to practice with PK Love! So it's not... _all_ bad.

It's only about... 95% bad.

"Okay... I promise I will keep this secret."

"Thank you. Ahh... you know... all the important people in my life seem to be psychic... Ness... _him_... and now... you."

"Do you... do you ever wish you were psychic as well?"

"Haha! You know, sometimes I do! For years on end, I've contemplated my sad position and thought not only about if I was psychic but also... what if _I_ were Ness? What if I had all those things? It was pure envy that Ness has all these things, despite all the things that he did. The things he did to _me._

"But now... now things are soo much different. You know that saying, _'good things come to those that wait'?_ Well, I've been waiting a _very_ long time. I've lived through so many generations — I have no age! I've survived the end of the_ world!"_

"And Ness... he doesn't even have a _tombstone_ now! But he doesn't matter anymore. With you, _you_, my one, _true_ friend, we will make this world our own. All the Ness... Nessi... Nesses... _whatever_ the plural of Ness is! All of them, will be _eliminated."_

"And then the world... will be pure again?"

"Exactly. The world will be exactly the way we want it. All the people that hate me_... gone._ Forever!"

"Gone? As in... we kill them?"

"I can hear it... the apprehension in your voice. You're adverse to killing, I imagine. So you should be."

"Killing those who stand in our way... is it truly necessary? Could we not just capture or imprison them?"

"We could. And we _will._ I am not without mercy. And those who accept the changes and have been previously misguided, they will be welcomed into New Pork City. But what about those who continue to fight? What about those who cannot be reasoned with? What then? It's either you or them."

"So then... you kill them. Kill them before they kill you. And... that's why you wanted me to become the Commander, isn't it? In case we needed to do so. And, that's why this tower has a laser on top of it?"

"I was wondering if you'd ask about that. There will be a time where we must fight fire with fire... or lightning in this case. And that... that will be very useful. In fact... that time is already upon us. The war has only just begun. And to win this 'war', we must kill."

"We kill, to protect. To ensure success. Because in truth, an evil person is not _just_ evil. Do you want to know why I could never really hate Ness, despite all the things I've said? Because, despite all the things he did to me, none of them wouldn't have happened if it weren't for _those_ three. The ones who... _corrupted_ him."

"So despite all the things he did, and despite all that I've said, I will never _truly_ hate him. But a few bad apples spoil the basket, don't they? So we grab the bad apples and keep hurling them out until they give up and rot away."

"So who exactly do we go about this war?"

"Patience. I'm not exactly a particularly patient person myself but living for an eternity kinda forces it in you. New Pork City, the centre of it all, is large but it needs to be bigger."

"But the Thunder Tower has completed, right? So... now we have the power for such an expansion."

"Indeed. Once my city is complete, we start. And you, my friend, my_ partner._ You have a very special role to play. When we succeed, all the people we have saved, will look to me, _Master_ Porky, with you by my side, as the Commander of the Pigmask Army, the greatest army in the _world!_

"And... I will be there to support you at every point."

"Thank you... you know, I thought that Ness was the only one who truly understood me. But I was wrong. _You_... you and I are truly _alike._ _Both_ of us have come from families that hated us, and both of us have suffered greatly, both physically and mentally. But now, _both_ of us have come together and now this island will become our playground!"

Porky extends a mechanical claw from his machine.

"Ready?"

With my own hand, I shake it.

"Ready."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Claustober! Of course, I had to do something for this month, and so here we are with the 15th chapter... I can hardly believe I’ve gotten this far! 
> 
> Apologies that this one isn’t as long as the others, but with it, that concludes this mini little arc of sorts. I've had the idea for this chapter for some time — specifically, a chapter that had Porky go on a giant rant about why he hates Ness which gives some insight into his twisted mind. I may have gotten a bit too heavy with the 'writer' metaphors though.
> 
> One thing I'm not sure is clear that I'll clarify — at one point Porky mentions 'him' copying PSI and not mastering it. While Claus (incorrectly) assumes Porky is referring to Ness, Porky's actually talking about Giygas being able to use PSI Rockin, but not being able to use above the Beta variant of it.
> 
> There's one more thing I'd like to discuss here — a challenge of sorts. You know that teddy bear that Porky has? Can you figure out what was written on it? I've given you 3 of the 9 letters, so see if you can figure out the rest. 
> 
> Here's something that might help you figure out the answer — who was the previous owner of the bear? I think it's fairly obvious who the bear belonged to — in fact, you've probably already figured it out! But if you can answer that, then that may just help you out.
> 
> I do intend to reveal the answer to this little puzzle — but it won't be in this story, rather it'll be in a future story for Earthbound that I have plans for. God knows when that'll be though, considering I have this fanfic and A Third Of Love to do. It would only be after I finish Behind The Mask, at the earliest.
> 
> So I dunno, make your guesses in the comments if you want! I'll say this: don't go too crazy over trying to figure it out — the answer's kinda dumb. I just wanted to throw this in because... hey, I thought it'd be fun.
> 
> Next time, Claus begins his training with Fassad.


	16. Psycho Psychic Gods

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claus stumbles upon memories of those he’s met, as well as a certain group of psychics.

Ohhhh... I'm _so_ tired...

What does today make this... the _63rd_ day? Yes, I think so... that would mean that I've been doing this for 2 months.

I can't believe I've been doing this for 2 _months._

There's a saying I've once heard that I've become rather fond of over my life... and it's days like _today_ that I'm reminded that saying.

_'The only dependable thing about the future is uncertainty.'_

And from my life, I've learned that saying couldn't be more true — to say otherwise would be pure... _arrogance._

Because nothing is certain. Life can change in just the blink of an eye, and so drastically as well. I mean, look at me — I went from being a normal kid to becoming the Commander of an army after fighting a cybernetic dinosaur!

Although, I'm not Commander _yet._ I'm actually getting rather close though — I've been training for almost 2 years now. Perhaps... another year, and then I may very well become the Commander.

It's rather strange... Commander, it's a title I've been seeking for so long and yet now... it's actually within my grasp. Life really _is_ uncertain, isn't it?

But then, there were the _bad_ changes. I went from having a friend that I... that I _cherished,_ to being back alone... again.

I... _miss_ her. A lot. I suppose spending four months in close proximity with Miss Marsh has led me to become... rather _used_ to her presence.

How used?

There are times where I'll walk into my room, and for a moment, I'll expect to see her in her 'bed', recharging herself for the next day.

But she isn't.

There are times when I'll walk into the kitchen, and for a moment, I'll see her feverishly moving about, in her efforts to make steak for Master Porky.

But she won't.

And there are times when I'll be walking to the elevator, heading off to train, and for a moment, I'll hear a strange rustling behind me, like the familiar sound of a sweet, mechanical voice saying goodbye...

But when I turn, there's nothing there. There never is.

So why do I keep turning anyway?

Since Miss Marsh has left, the task of making meals for Master Porky has since fallen on me. I must admit, even though that's why I started learning how to cook, by the end, I was doing it because I enjoyed it. It's certainly a lot different cooking on my own — it's more tense since I don't have anyone to help me out in case I screw up.

ut it's also... less fun, I suppose. Part of what made it fun was spending time with a friend, and now that's been taken away.

Still, cooking remains a rather soothing activity for me, though I can't quite pinpoint _why._ Perhaps it's the quiet nature of the kitchen. Or the relatively simple tasks I have to do. Or it's just because it gives me to think.

Or maybe it's all of them.

The things I have to cook for Master Porky range depending on what he's in the mood for. Sometimes he wants something simple like a stew. Other times, he's feeling more exotic and requests some Bean Croquettes. One thing I have noticed though, is that he will always ask for Steak at least once a week. Always.

A rewatching of Earthbound gave me an idea as to why that may be the case though — Ness's favourite food was Steak, and he too would have it once a week. I'm starting to see more and more what Master Porky meant when he said he doesn't actually hate Ness.

And if I've counted correctly, this is the 9th time I've watched the movie in question. Yes, the_ 9th_ time.

I find it oddly... addicting. Even though I know exactly what happens and even though I know it's not true, I still find myself engrossed with it every single time. And I couldn't say why either. It's like this... this_ desire,_ to know more about the past, and this is one of the few relics of the past.

Well, this, as well as Dr Andonuts and Master Porky.

My interactions with both of them have been fairly limited though. I see Dr Andonuts every month or so, for my usual check up, but after the time when I informed him about the Mr Saturn and we discussed the cataclysm, he's been very closed off.

As for Master Porky... I thought I'd be able to see him more often, and well, technically I _do_... but it's only for about _3_ minutes a day, when I have to deliver his food. He seems to still be very busy.

So overall, my life in the Empire Porky Building has been rather lonely.

Ahhh... part of me really wants to just collapse and go to sleep... but I still need to make dinner for Master Porky... _and_ myself.

Reluctantly, I drag myself out of my bed and to the kitchen, though not before I quickly use the Instant Revitlising Device in my room to reenergise myself.

Let's see... Master Porky wanted a King Burger with some fries — it's a recipe I've had a considerable amount of practice for, as it's a dish Master Porky is fond of.

Because of that, it's not a particularly difficult recipe — I just mix some ground beef with some salt and pepper, form some patties, and cook them.

The buns require a little bit more work, due to the signature golden crown on top of them. Still, it's not all that difficult to make dough, roll it, and cut a crown out of it, which I bake and then place on top.

As for the fries, I simply toss some frozen ones into the oven and that's about it. They'll only need half an hour... what can I make for myself in that time then?

In the end, I settle for pasta. It's equally simple as the burgers, though I decide to experiment a little for once by increasing the amount of olive oil from _two_ teaspoons to _three._

How rebellious.

Soon enough, I finish, with everything looking how it should, and the kitchen still intact. Hooray.

I take the burger and fries to Master Porky's room and knock on it, waiting for about a minute. Predictably enough, there's no answer — mind you, that's not all that surprising, since Master Porky rarely actually answers the door because he's usually so busy.

So instead, I place the food in this pocket next to the door, which takes the food for me. With that sorted, I take my pasta to my room and start eating it.

Urgh... it tastes really bitter! I should have just stuck to the recipe. Well, I suppose this is what I get for being a rebel.

Fitting, isn't it — a _crappy_ end to a crappy _day._

Mind you, most of my days feel like crap anyway.

Why?

A very good question, and I have a very simple answer.

**Fassad.**

Seriously, even though I accept that nothing is certain, one of the few things I'm sure is _pretty _close to certain, is the fact that I. Hate. _Fassad._

And hate is a _very_ strong word. The only other people that I hate would be the people of Tazmily — and that's a _collection_ of people, rather than an_ individual!_

After visiting the Thunder Tower two months ago, I started training with Fassad to strengthen my psychic powers — something I am admittedly behind in. But to be quite frank, training with Fassad is one of the worst things I have _ever_ had the displeasure of doing!

I'd rather try and scale the Empire Porky Building with my bare hands.

I'd rather go ten rounds with a Mecha — Drago with no weapons.

I'd rather be chucked into a Phase Distorter and see if Dr Andonuts's warnings were unfounded or if he really was right.

Granted, the outcomes of doing so would mean I'd be stranded in another time or _dead_ \- but either way, I'd be _far_ away from Fassad!

Okay, okay, _maybe_ I'm being a little hyperbolic. Death isn't preferable to life... well, not _yet._

But I still stand by the fact that training with Fassad is the worst thing I've done in my life. Why? He's just... intolerable. His standards are so impossibly high that it's not even _funny._

For instance, there was the time that he wanted me to use PK Thunder to shock something... _with three hundred volts!_

The Thunder Tower is designed to produce electricity, and from what I've heard, the electricity that reaches all the appliances at _230_ volts — yes, Fassad wanted me to generate electricity more powerful than a _tower_ specifically designed to generate it!

Oh, and I was bored one day, so I decided to do some research into electricity and see how dangerous it is.

Here's a_ 'fun'_ fact — the minimum voltage needed to kill a human is _fifty_ volts.

So, to add more unreasonableness upon the already existing unreasonableness, Fassad wants me to generate electricity powerful enough to _kill_ a person, _six times over!_

Guess what? I _can't._

But, somehow, _somehow,_ that's not even the worst part — oh no, not by a long shot!

I've always thought this, and it hasn't changed... but I think it bears repeating. Fassad... is _really_ creepy. As in, _really_ strange and really _creepy._

I don't think I'll ever forget my first day with him.

My lessons with Fassad take place in the morning thankfully — because if they were in the afternoon, I'm sure I'd do horribly in them due to how exhausted I would be.

On that morning, I went to the training faculty as usual, but this time I went to a specific area that I've never been to before — it's on the west side, which I've never had any reason to go to... until then.

It's there that Fassad was waiting for me, for the session.

He very quickly laid down the ground rules for me.

_"You don't move unless I say so, chimera. You don't touch anything, you don't say anything, you don't do anything, unless I say you can. Got it?"_

So basically, I have no freedom whatsoever. Things... didn't exactly seem like they were starting well, and yeah, they didn't continue well either.

After I told Fassad that I understood his rules, he asked me to demonstrate my power. I wasn't exactly sure what he meant by that, but I assumed he meant my power with my PSI.

The only piece of offensive PSI I'm capable of using is PK Thunder and PK Love, the latter of which at the time, I had no idea how to use again, and even now, I _still _can't use it.

So, PK Thunder it was, and so I blasted Fassad using the Beta variant of it.

He... took it rather well...

In fact, he took it so well, that he was actually _disappointed_ in me.

_"Pathetic! Is that really all you can do?! Are you holding back? Are you disrespecting me, chimera?! No, even you know better than do that!"_

So, I granted his wish, and shocked him again, and once again, he took it equally as well.

_"There is so much work to be done... why did I have to get stuck with this job? Chimera, I have been informed that you can use PK Love. Is this correct?"_

_"It is... but I have only used it once, and I have yet to replicate its effects."_

_"Of course you couldn't... those idiots had to make it so I couldn't use it!"_

I remember that quite well — from what it seems, Fassad is incapable of using PK Love. I passed it off at the time, but later I remembered something I read about PK Love — it can only be used by certain people.

And for how much I may detest Fassad, I cannot dent that he _is_ a powerful psychic. So, it would make sense that he should have little issue mastering PK Love — but he can't, which proves that learning the PSI in question isn't based on power, but rather... well, actually, what _is_ it based on? I've... never really considered it.

What makes me able to use PK Love, when Fassad can't? The obvious answer would be the PSI's namesake — love. I have more love than Fassad, therefore I can use PK Love and he can't.

However, it is quite presumptuous to assume that Fassad does not love anyone whatsoever. Granted, I wouldn't be surprised if that were _true,_ given the way that he acts, but I can't make baseless assumptions.

And even if that were true, that wouldn't explain why other psychics can't use it either. For example, Ness, Paula and Poo, for how despicable they may be, were still capable of feeling affection for each other... right? Love is not an emotion that is either good or evil, even if is more commonly attributed to the first. The mystery only grows deeper...

But after the... _very_ negative first impression I gave to Fassad of my ability with PSI, he started the training.

I'll admit, at the time, I was very curious to see what training PSI entailed, since it's not like training your body where you can exercise and whatnot.

Well, I should say this then — I was curious _at the time._

Fassad first asked me to mediate. I... had no idea what he meant by meditate — I'd never heard of the word at the time. After some ridiculing, Fassad told me it was involves trying to clear your mind, to not be distracted by anything.

So, I sat down, and closed my eyes. I... I didn't know exactly how to clear my mind, so I just led my mind wander to wherever it took me.

I remember... there were many things. It was strange... it was like dreaming, and yet... I _felt_ everything more... everything was more... more _clear._ It was... it was a place I've never seen... a place I don't think exists... except for in my mind...

It was... sunflowers. A field of sunflowers that stretched beyond my vision. And... they all felt so... delicate. Soft, like the hair of a maid... and yet, as fragile as the butterflies that feed from them.

I... I could have so easily grabbed one, and then... destroyed it. A simple twist of the stem, a swipe of my stick and a blast of electricity... it would have been mangled beyond all recognition. Just... a smouldering pile of petals, their scent one of acrid smoke that burned the lungs of those who smelled them, instead of the sweet scent of...

_ **(Home...)** _

...peace? The sweet scent of... peace...

The field was endless. The further I walked, the more I could sunflowers I saw. They stood high, magnifying the rays of the star above, shining like beacons of hope.

The last thing I remember... was... it was a, a patch... a barren patch. An area which had been razed, the sunflowers torn to shreds, where life had once been... but it had been completely erased.

And in its place, was a _grave._

It stood there, in stark contrast to the rest of the area. While the rest of the area shone with peace and joy, this part was nothing but darkness and misery.

It... it shouldn't have been there... it's... it's not_ right!_

Around the grave was blood, dark red and clear... it pooled around the grave, staining the flowers red.

And on that grave, a single set of sunflowers adorned it. A single set of sunflower crowns.

_"BOO!"_

So, imagine my situation then. I was mediating, feeling calm and peaceful, not a care in the world, just admiring the view of these sunflower fields.

And then, suddenly, I felt something grab my _face_ and heard something shouted in my _ear._

Therefore, I think you'll find it quite understandable if I told you that my immediate reaction, was to instinctively turn around and to try and beat the thing that touched me to a bloody _pulp._

Unfortunately for me, said thing was_ Fassad._

I got a few strikes in, before he simply blasted me away with one use of PK Freeze.

_"Nwehehehe! You need to be a lot more focused than that, chimera!"_

Oh yeah, that's another thing — Fassad always refers to me as_ 'chimera',_ which I'm not exactly fond of. Although, I don't actually have a name, and I suppose it wouldn't make sense for the Fassad to call me Commander since we are on equal ranking... actually, I'm not even the Commander yet, so Fassad is actually _higher_ up the chain of command than me.

Still, I would _prefer_ to not be called _'chimera'._

So, the rest of the morning consisted of me mediating while Fassad kept trying to break my concentration — and he was definitely enjoying himself way too much, because he's a creature that feasts in other people's misery.

After that fiasco though, he dismissed me, and I went to the other side to resume my physical training.

But meditation isn't the only thing Fassad has me do.

Sometimes, Fassad will ask me to do ridiculous feats with my PSI, like blowing up a mountain, burning a forest or the aforementioned 'shock something with 300 volts.'

Fassad knows, he _knows_ I can't do any of these things, nor am I anywhere _close_ to being able to do any of those things, but he still makes me do it, knowing I'm going to fail. And his response is always a _'Nwehehehehe!'._

And yet, despite the fact that he's just intolerable, despite the fact that he is the part of the day I _dread,_ and despite the fact that I _really_ don't want to say what I'm about to say next, I can't deny that Fassad... _isn't_ that bad of a teacher?

Well, actually, _no,_ that's a horrible choice of words and it's _also_ completely wrong — he's a _terrible_ teacher. _That_ is indisputable.

But I can't deny that Fassad, despite how much I hate him, is an _effective_ teacher.

Not a _good_ teacher, mind you, but he is an _effective_ one.

Mediating has actually been rather useful for me — it's helped during some days where I'm feeling particular lonely. It's always nice to revisit the Sunflower Fields.

On a practical point of view, my PSI has actually improved. Fassad gave me some advice regarding PK Thunder — he said that the key to using it, is not to imagine electricity but rather the _sensation of electricity._

To imagine the feeling of paralysis taking hold of a person, to imagine their nerves seizing up on them, to imagine their skin bursting into flames... it's... it really has helped.

He's also said I need to use PSI more often, which, fair enough. The more I use it, the better I will become.

And indeed, he was right — I started using Defence Down a lot more often against the Octobots I fight, and tried to apply Fassad's advice.

Whenever I use Defence Down, I... I see, no... I _envision_ pain. I envision their bodies weakening, their armour shattering, their pain increasing.

Because that's what it is, isn't it? It's a way to increase the pain a person feels. It's a way to make them suffer more, and suffer quickly.

I became rather familiar with the aura of that PSI. If I had to describe it... it feels like... a difference. I can _feel_ the difference between them, and myself. And once I use it... the gap widens. The difference becomes more pronounced.

The outcome becomes more certain.

And one month and a psychic fever later, I learned Defence Down Omega.

When I first used it, it was... it felt similar... and yet, it was so much more _powerful_. It was... overwhelming...

I spent a lot of time experimenting with it, and it's been very useful — you see, the intended use of Defence Down Omega, is for it to be used on _multiple_ opponents at once, thereby eliminating the greatest flaw of the Alpha variant.

In fact, this turned the Octobots from moderately challenging, to a complete _joke_ — being able to reduce the defence of _multiple_ Octobots at once and then blast them with PK Thunder makes things _very_ one sided.

Yet, I've still been having trouble with a certain piece of PSI — PK Love.

Since Day 1 with Fassad, I've been continuously practicing PK Love, trying to get myself to use it again.

But, I've always been unsuccessful. I... I keep trying, and yet... I just keep failing. It's so _frustrating!_ What... what am I doing wrong? I've never had trouble with any of my other PSI — once I learned PK Thunder and Defence Down, I could used them whenever I wanted.

But that isn't the case here.

Even Fassad doesn't have much advice for me. He just says to keep using it... but I don't think practice will be of any help here. Still, I suppose I'll keep trying.

If I don't, then Fassad will only get more annoyed then me — he generally gets pissed off over the fact that I'm too_ 'weak'_ to use it, but again, I don't think it's a matter of strength.

So, in conclusion, I hate Fassad, but he _is_ good at what he does — teaching PSI _and_ being a pain in the _ass._

With some effort, I finish off my pasta. Note to self: in the future, _stick to the recipe!_

It's still a little early and after cooking, I don't really feel tired any more... what to do then?

Well, I suppose I could do some reading — there's a library in the Empire Porky Building that I like to go to.

You know, why not? I'll go there for an hour, and then I'll get some rest.

So, with that, I look around for my stick — just in case I happen to get into a fight.

I quickly find it among my meagre possessions, but it slips, and I drop it onto the floor. For Pork's sake... where is it... what... what's this?

There's a book on the floor among my stick. How, and when did it get there?

I pick it up along with my stuck, examining the front of it... _'Psycho Psychic Gods'..._ when on earth did this come from?

Psycho Psychic Gods... why is that familiar?

And then, I _remember._ I took this... it was over a year ago, wasn't it? Yes... I took this from the Chimera Laboratory, intending to read it... but I never did get round to it, did I? Somehow, I forget all about it. I hope they didn't need this... because I think at this point it's practically mine.

That name... it's quite an ominous one... I wonder if that's _why_ I took it in the first place. Well... I _did_ want to read something. I suppose this is as suitable a candidate as any.

It's not that long either — only about 100 pages. To the ordinary person, that might seem rather lengthy. But my systems allow me to take in large amounts of information at once, so I may very well finish this today.

On the book's cover, there are seven... people? They _look_ human... and yet, _not_ at the same time. I can't quite ascertain their genders either... hmm... who _are_ they?

I open the book, and start to read. From the very first page, the book has me interested. The things it describes... it's incredibly interesting. The more I read, the more I ask, and the more the book refuses to answer me. I suppose that's a mark of how well it's written.

It's a factual book, it would seem, and it... it tells of a group of creatures, that guard the Nowhere Islands, the so called 'psycho psychic gods'... known as the _Magypsies._

A group of beings that exist for one purpose — to guard their island. Physically, they seem quite strange. Their appearance is not like that of any human, yet they seem to bear more than just a passing resemblance to them. Their hair is perhaps what stands out the most, and it's also the only physical trait that is consistent between them all— each of them have hair that's a bright, bubblegum pink.

But while their appearance is similar to humans, their power is most certainty not. The Magyspies are supposedly _incredibly_ powerful psychics, capable of using virtually any PSI in existence... would that include PK Love then?

And they're _immortal._ They won't die. _Ever._ Just like... Master Porky.

I wonder... with that much power... and the ability to live_ forever..._ would that make them more powerful than Giygas? Hm... I suppose that's one question that simply cannot be answered though.

But in that respect, the Magypsies are quite terrifying. They are beings that are essentially have the power of Giygas... but they actually _exist!_

I suppose, it's a good thing that are supposedly good natured... but that doesn't really mean anything, does it? After all, even the _purest_ of things can be twisted into something sinister and..._ corrupted._

I can only hope that the same doesn't apply here as well. These pink haired psychics could very well end this world, as easily as they could save it... _wait... pink haired psychics..._

That _girl._ The one at Club Titiboo. She had pink hair... and she was a _psychic._ Was she... a... a_ Magyspy?_

No... she can't be. She was more powerful then me, yes, but still _far_ too weak than I would have thought one of them would be.

I flick back to the cover and have a look at the illustration of the Magyspies. Hm... that girl... none of them look like her. In addition, I could identify her by eye as female, but I can't identify the gender of the Magypsies, if they have one anyway.

But still, the similarities between the two are too significant to be mere chance, yet, right now, I'm left with no course of action to take, except to simply remember this for the future.

As I keep reading, I only start to wonder more about these mysterious creatures... until I get to one particular section.

_'Needles.'_

That word... it's popped up a couple of times throughout so far... and yet I've been unable to obtain any sort of significant meaning from it. The book talks about the Magypsies being responsible for these... needles. But what's so special about them?

The answer? _Everything._

These Needles... they seem to be of great importance. The book states that guarding these Needles are _'the life's work of a Magyspsy.'_

_The nature and purpose of the Magypsies is one which no one can say. Although they are supposed to be the guardians of the island, they do not like to interfere in affairs on the island, unless not doing so would pose a risk to it._

_However... what they do take particular interest in, are the Needles. The Seven Needles. Magical artefacts, and there is one for each Magyspy, and are of great importance to them._

_Why?_

_No one can be sure. All we know, is that they will guard their location, and their very existence with their lives._

_It is theorised that the Needles are the source of the Magypsies' power, being a conduit to the Earth itself. If pulled, this may cause their power to disappear._

Interesting... these Needles may be the reason they are so powerful. If we had cause to eliminate the Magypsies for some reason, we could pull these Needles. They would then be much weaker... and so, we could more easily kill them.

But I must question — if the Needles _are_ the reason the Magypsies are so strong... then who _made_ the Needles? It can't be the Magypsies themselves, because that's just _idiocy_ — why would anyone tie their power to something else by _choice?_

So, someone _else_ must have made the Needles, which means someone even _more_ powerful than the Magypsies... and so, someone who could potentially pose even _more_ of a threat.

Now, _that_ is _very_ concerning.

Does this book have an answer for this, I wonder... ah, there does seem to be something...

_The existence of the Needles is one that few are aware of, and their true purpose is unknown. Although believed to have existed since the beginning of time, it is believed that the Needles are the conduits to the Earth's power — in similar fashion to the Sanctuaries._

... what... _WHAT?!_

The... the Sanctuaries are _real?!_ This... that, that, that... that makes no _sense!_ The Sanctuaries... they, they... they don't exist! Right? No, according to this, they _do!_

The Sanctuaries... the conduits to the Earth's _power._ When all 8 of them are activated... that power unites into one force....

So, these Needles... do they do the same thing as well? Are they also a source for the Earth's power?

But wait... there were _8_ Sanctuaries... but only _7 _Needles! So, where did one of them go? And... what happens, if these Needles are pulled? In _Earthbound,_ Ness went to Magicant after visiting the Sanctuaries... so would the same happen here?

The person who pulls these Needles... goes to _Magicant?_

And... when _Ness_ overcame Magicant, he was able to gain the Earth's power so... the Needles do the same! They... they bestow the power of the planet onto the person who _pulls_ them! In fact, wait a minute... _yes..._ that would explain why the Magypsies guard the Needles — because they don't want an evil person getting access to that power!

Imagine... having _all_ that power! The power to blow up_ mountains,_ with little more than a single _thought..._ it's... it's _incomprehensible..._ and likely not _safe_ as well.

But, here's the thing — the Magyspies' power is tied _to_ the Needle, so when it's pulled, they lose it. However... the Sanctuaries don't work like that... they're... they're not a reusable thing, I imagine. I mean, this seems like a one and done thing — once you pull the Needle, you can't exactly just put it back in... although for that matter, you'd think these Needles wouldn't be able to be pulled at all, unless the being above the Magypsies wanted them to be pulled... but why?

I look through the rest of the book, trying to see if there's anything else that could be useful, or an answer to any of my questions... but there isn't. The rest of the book seems to be more debate on where the Magyspies could have possibly come from... maybe they're also aliens, like Giygas was.

But still... from what I _have_ read... this is information to be considered. I... I'm not sure what to make of all this.

The Magyspies... guardians with so much power...

The Needles... equivalents to the Sanctuaries...

And the mystery of what happens when they are pulled looming above us all.

Perhaps, there's not much I can do with it now...

But... I should remember it. Because... there may very well be a day where I'll have to meet these creatures.

For now... I suppose all I can do is wait... keep going... and remember this creatures, these people.

Because from what it sounds like, there's a _lot_ to fear from these psycho psychic gods.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well... this one's very filler-ey, to the point where I'm not exactly sure why I made it, since only two important things happen here — Claus learns about the Magyspies and learns Defence Down Omega. I guess I made it to bridge the gap, after Chapter 15.
> 
> Again, this chapter's mostly here to build on the Masked Man, and his relationships with several people, like Fassad, Marshmallow and Porky.
> 
> But of course, there's also this chapter's namesake, the book Claus borrowed all the way back in Chapter 7. Yeah, I bet you completely forgot about it until now — and to be fair, I almost did as well.
> 
> I've had the idea for some time — a chapter where Claus finds out about the Magypsies and starts debating with himself about all the things he learns, and also to explore the characters a bit more...
> 
> Yeah... that's about all I have to say about this chapter. I'm sorry for this one — I guess I just struggled to write this and... perhaps not the best. My apologies for that.
> 
> However, there is another matter I’d like to discuss. As of when I’m posting this, Behind The Mask has been here... for an entire year, and I've been a fanfiction writer for one year. Yeah.. I can’t believe it either. I’ve actually been doing this for an entire year.
> 
> It’s strange... one year ago, I was little more than a fanfiction writer that had ambition, but no vision, and that was a deadly combination. It didn’t get me anywhere. But... after some time off, and with the help of a number of people that I’m all too grateful for, I think... I think I’ve managed to get somewhere.
> 
> In particular, on this site, I’d like to give my dearest thanks to three writers — singing_to_empty_caves, TokoBushyBird and RainyTazmily, three writers who have... they’ve been a great inspiration for me, and as I’d say they’re all better writers than me, do go and check their stuff out — particularly if you like the Mother Series (which, again, I’m guessing you do, seeing as you’re reading this).
> 
> Either way... I hope to keep doing this. After all, it’s been a pleasure.
> 
> Next time, Claus assists with the creation of an object that's rather... safe.


	17. Absolutely Safe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claus assists with creating something absolutely safe, realizing how much of a prison absolutely safe means.

Time is like the finest string... something delicate, something precious and something that can easily slip through your fingers without you even knowing it.

With a sigh, I put down the book I have in my hands. 

I've been reading far too much, haven't I? I'm coming up with all these philosophical ideas... even though that's not my purpose.

_My_ purpose is the same as it has always been — to lead the greatest army in the world. It's simple. To take every fact, eliminate all uncertainties and reach the logical conclusion. To make the choice that is best for my troops, and for the army as a whole. To serve Master Porky, and do whatever he wishes.

It's a simple job, isn't it?

But... well, sometimes I find myself thinking about _more... _something _beyond_ the army. If I am to become the Commander, then one day, I'd obviously retire, if not because I'd simply want to, then because of my age which would prevent me from being an effective fighter.

So what then? What would I do when I leave? To be quite honest, I'm... not sure. 

I have given it some thought... I'd like to go somewhere... peaceful? New Pork City is certainly _nice,_ but... but what?

Hm... what's wrong with New Pork City? It... it has everything I need... it's home, isn't it? It's home, and it has everything I'd ever want. And yet... I think I'd prefer somewhere different. 

Actually, the Thunder Tower does sound rather nice. It might not seem like a sensible choice for most, but for someone like me, it's _perfect._

I've only visited the tower three times, but the building _astounds_ me every time. I've grown rather fond of lightning — my extensive use of PK Thunder might have something to do with that. 

So, a tower that _makes_ the stuff by the gallon for _all_ of New Pork City? I'll admit — it's quite interesting for me!

I've even been able to sit in on some of the Pigmasks' experiments with lightning — like seeing the production of a Clayman, scary and yet amazing.

And of course, the Thunder Tower _is_ where Miss Marsh currently resides... hm... all in all, it does sound like a lovely place for retirement.

But that's in the far future, and this is now. I've been at this for quite some time... in fact, I've even hit another milestone — my second _year_ of being with the Pigmasks.

The occasion passed without much incidence — I celebrated the occasion with my regiment and the Fierce Pork Trooper, as I did last year and saw another of the DCMC's concerts. The Fierce Pork Trooper says I'm doing rather well — he reckons I might have actually _surpassed_ him!

It's a strange thought — I am going to be the Commander of the army, which means I _should_ be the strongest, but actually _being_ the strongest is something that I hadn't ever considered I would reach. Hm... I wonder if I might even surpass Fassad.

Speaking of Fassad, he's _less_ pleased with my progress, to put it mildly. PSI is something I'm struggling to grasp and that hasn't exactly been the best of news to Fassad. My efforts to learn PK Love are just fruitless as they were before... I simply can't understand it... I've used it once before, so why am I struggling to replicate it?

I've taken to trying my hand at other kinds of PSI instead — though it was hard, I have managed to learn the very basics of Lifeup. And I mean _basics_ here — Fassad doesn't reckon I'll go any higher than Alpha, and for once, I'm inclined to agree with him. 

But, the months have passed by, relatively uneventfully anyway.

Until today.

You see, starting this week, I've been given special permission by Master Porky to take two months off my training — but not for relaxation.

It's actually something much more... _interesting._

It happened precisely one week ago, at Beauty and Tasty during one of our meetings.

_"So, my friend... I have a very special task for you. Something... top secret."_

Naturally, I was rather intrigued — after all, a top secret assignment is intriguing by nature.

_"What is it, my lord?"_

_"Haha... well first, I have a question for you. How old do you think I am?"_

Now... this was a question I've wondered ever since I met Master Porky, but I've never received an answer. I started trying to analyze his body to make a guess, but to no avail — according to my sensors, he should have died _long_ ago.

_"5000 years?"_

_"Hahaha! You're not even close! And that... that is my point. I am very old... so old, that I can't even move, or walk, or do anything. So frail, that if it weren't for this capsule, I would be defenceless. And that... that is a problem. This empire needs its king. And this king will not fall, nor will he die. And this... this is where you come in."_

_"In what way?"_

_"Well... this capsule is certainly durable... but it's not durable enough. What if someone strong were to come, and destroy it? What would I do then? I would die."_

And in similar fashion to Miss Marsh, his bed capsule doesn't seem to be built primarily for combat, rather for maintaining himself, so that _is_ a very real possibility.

_"So... you want me to help you prevent that? Well, in that case, anyone who threatens you, I shall eliminate. Terminate with extreme prejudice."_

_"Hahaha! Very good, very good! But you forget one thing. As Commander of the Pigmask Army, you may not always be at my side. And then what would I do? I require... a backup. A contingency. Something to reassure me, that even in that situation, I, Master Porky, will be the one who comes out on top!"_

_"What do you need then?"_

_"I want you, with the help of some others that I have specially chosen, to build something, something that provides me a way of keeping myself safe from all others, if I use it."_

_"So... something like a safe then?"_

_"A safe, a vault, a capsule — I care not. All I request, is something to protect me, from all those in the world that would wish harm upon me."_

_"I see... is there anything specific you'd want?"_

_"Hm... let's see... I have two requests. Firstly, it's gotta have a window — it's no fun if I can't see someone's stupid face as they hopelessly try and break through my barrier! And the other... it must be absolutely safe. You understand me? Absolutely _ ** _safe. _ ** _Nothing can ever touch me. Absolutely... safe."_

Absolutely safe... it's a concept that sounds oxymoronic to me. How can something be _absolutely_ safe? Nothing is _absolutely_ safe.

No matter how hard you make a brick wall, you can always knock it down with enough strength.

No matter how bright and powerful the fire, you can always put it out with enough water.

No matter how strong the force, you can always overcome it with a _stronger_ one.

So how can something be _so_ safe, that it is _exempt_ from that? It's... _impossible._

And yet, that's _exactly_ the thing Master Porky has tasked me with trying to _make_ possible. In _two months. _Well... I won't deny that this will certainly be a challenge.

Thankfully, I won't be alone in this. Dr Andonuts is going to be involved, and it's a good thing he is — figuring out how to create something like this would be impossible for me alone.

And so, for the next two weeks, I'll be at the Chimera Laboratory, assisting with this task.

I'm taken to the Laboratory on a Porkship, and when I enter, there are only 3 people — a Pigmask Captain at a desk and two Pigmask Majors standing guard at a door.

The captain looks at one of the majors, who gives a gesture to leave, and they do so — I presume for the sake of privacy, given the nature of my visit.

"Commander!"

"Sir!" The two majors both approach me, giving a salute of respect. I give a nod of approval, before telling them to stand at ease.

"I presume the two of you are aware of why I am here?"

"Indeed, Commander. In fact, that's why we have vacated this area. We're here to escort you."

"Commander, you should know this — because of what you're doing, you'll require an escort to go anywhere within the Laboratory during this time, which will likely be us."

I give a wordless nod of understanding. It does make sense — such matters require utmost secrecy, and spies from Tazmily are always a possibility. Should they get wind of such an event, they may very well attempt to sabotage our project.

The majors give me another salute, before turning on the spot and heading into the next room. 

As I follow them, I can faintly hear the sounds of chimeras being constructed — drills and the like. 

But I can also hear their cries, distorted and mechanical in nature, which echo throughout the building.

And yet... there's one sound that stands out above all the sounds. This... this strange _clink _followed by a monstrous _roar, _the sound reverberating throughout the entire building. When I first hear it, I almost jumped out of sheer shock... what is this?

It's... it's fear, isn't it? 

Fear... I... no, I cannot. I cannot feel this. I _shouldn't_ feel this. The Commander must stand in front of fear, and ignore it. Laugh at it.

But those _roars... _I don't know _what_ they are, but whatever it is... it's certainly something ferocious.

What kind of chimera _is_ that? I can only say that it's the kind that no person would ever want to face... not even me.

As we head through the laboratory, I wonder where exactly we're going — we've headed up to the second floor, but according to my map, we're not heading in the direction of any of the rooms containing equipment you'd need for this kind of task.

I have a look at my map once more, and that's when it hits me — we're heading to the _third_ floor.

I've never actually been there before — I've never had any reason to.

In fact, now that I think about it, there were always some Pigmasks guarding the only elevator to that floor, and sure enough, when we get there, two Pigmask _Colonels_ are standing guard. 

When we approach, they both raise their guns in warning, before the two Pigmask Majors both show an ID card, and the Colonels both lower their weapons, moving to the side to let us into the elevator.

The third floor itself simply consist a single corridor with a door at the end. How ominous.

When we reach the end, the majors turn towards me, before one speaks.

"Well, Commander... this is it. Dr Andonuts is inside of here."

"Thank you. You may leave."

One final salute and the two of them walk back, leaving me alone. With some trepidation, I carefully open the door, seeing what's inside.

It's... it's enormous. Of all the rooms meant for constructing things, this is the largest one I've seen in the Chimera Laboratory — much larger than the one I was reconstructed in, and much larger than the area where Miss Marsh and Mr Geneator were created.

There's quite the assortment of high tech equipment as well, though it's all been put to the side, and the centre of the room is entirely empty.

On the edges of the room, is Dr Andonuts, who's currently looking through a number of his notes in intense concentration.

I rap on the door, and Dr Andonuts turns to face me, his eyes briefly widening, but returning back to normal — I don't think my appearance here is a surprise to him at all.

"Ah... good to see you made it. You didn't have any issues, did you?"

"None, Doctor."

"Good... good to hear."

"How... how are you?"

"Perfectly fine... just doing my business, you know. Chimeras and all... not my preferred science, but one that I'm good at..."

He looks up at me and chuckles. "Maybe even a little _too_ good at. You are fine, aren't you?"

"Indeed."

There's an awkward pause — I hate these, and they're rather frequent with Dr Andonuts, ever since... well, honestly, ever since over a _year_ ago, when I found out about the Nowhere Islands and the cataclysm that forced it to be the last area on Earth.

Since then, there's always been an air of discomfort about, one that's been here for a rather long time, one that both of us are _aware_ of, but one that neither of us have actually addressed.

"I'll get straight to the point then — you know exactly why I'm here."

Dr Andonuts sighs, placing his pencil down. "Yes... his Highness's top secret assignment. To build something that grants him protection unlike anything the world has ever seen. To create him something that could survive the end of the world without a scratch. To build something completely _safe."_

_"Absolutely_ safe. And we have two months to do so."

Dr Andonuts gives a rather grim chuckle at this. "Certainly quite the undertaking... well, I've already started trying to brainstorm ideas, but two brains might be more conducive to this. Have a look."

He points to a whiteboard on the side, which has some things written on it — possible shapes, sizes and materials that could be used.

"Hmm... if I might make a suggestion, Doctor? Perhaps we should isolate the qualities needed for this capsule, before we attempt to figure out what we will need."

Dr Andonuts laughs heartily at that. "You've got the makings of a scientist within you. Let's get to it!"

And so it begins. Over the course of that first week, we attempt to figure out the various qualities needed.

"Obviously, there would need to be some sort of life support for Master Porky — so, a form of nourishment, hydration and air to breath."

"The air would need some sort of filter then, to ensure that the carbon dioxide would be released, yet it would need to be incapable of being tampered with, and poisoned." Dr Andonuts says while writing it down.

"Some form of temperature control, to make sure it doesn't get too hot or cold inside... and Master Porky would ideally like it to be comfortable, so we would have to keep that in mind."

"And then there's the matter of the outside... if it were to be absolutely safe, then you could throw it into the Sun and it wouldn't do a thing."

"No such material like that exists, does it?"

"None even close. We'd have to make something like that... something that strong."

"Is that even possible?"

"To be quite frank, I have no idea. Then again, they said time travel was impossible, and look at us now."

"So it could be possible."

"It could, but even with the technology in this time, creating something absolutely safe may very well be beyond us. It could be another 10,000 years before such technology emerges. But still, we must try. It wouldn't just need durability, but longevity."

"Everything wears away over time... metal rusts, for instance."

"Exactly. So I believe a heavy dose of protective coatings would be needed, but even those aren't permanent..."

And so forth. We quickly realised all the qualities that this thing would need, in order to be absolutely safe... the only hard part of this process was trying to figure out a shape.

I would have thought that the shape of it would be the least of our concerns, but as Dr Andonuts pointed out, the shape would effect the amount of material we would require, and with the already impossible task of trying to make something absolutely safe, it would be best if it were as small as possible.

Now, of course, the volume inside of it would remain the same — we decided on three times the size of Master Porky's bed machine. 

However, surface area would vary with shape, and in the end, we went with a sphere... I suppose that would make this a _capsule_ then? An absolutely safe capsule.

The brainstorming was fairly easy, and after one week, we had isolated each quality we needed to account for.

The challenge... was actually _incorporating_ all that.

We started with the most simple things — temperature regulation and environmental control. With this, we'd ensure that the capsule wouldn't get too hot, or too cold and that a supply of oxygen would always be there.

That last one took some figuring out — oxygen is quite simply, finite. But of course, running out of oxygen wouldn't make this absolutely safe, so we had to figure out a way of replenishing it. 

Simply taking more from the surroundings is too risky — it introduces the possibility of the supply being contaminated, so we had to find a way of using what we had.

"What about... photosynthesis? Master Porky would exhale carbon dioxide and plants can be used to produce oxygen."

"But then, we run the risk of introducing plants... I like the idea of recycling the waste though. In fact... I think I might have a better way. Take a look at this."

Dr Andonuts directs my attention to a monitor of his, where he starts a simulation. It shows a laser pointing to a molecule of carbon dioxide, before firing a beam at it, causing it to split into its constituent elements.

"Wow! You can use a laser to split that up?!" The surprise is evident in my voice, though I should do better to hide it.

"Indeed! By firing a high energy ultraviolet laser, we can force a molecule of carbon dioxide to break down into carbon and oxygen." There's a lot of joy in Dr Andonuts's voice — I imagine he's happy to have someone interested in all this and someone to explain this all to.

"So... we can use this laser to recycle the carbon dioxide then?"

"Exactly!"

"But... wouldn't we need a way to power the laser? And that means a source of fuel, which would be limited."

"Not if we use renewable energy. Solar power would be the most effective. In fact, we could make the capsule itself a giant solar panel."

It took some time, but we were able to figure out all of the side details for this capsule — the only thing left was the hardest part.

What it would be _made_ off.

We tried our best, but no matter how you look at it, nothing is completely indestructible. 

Anything can be cracked, broken or destroyed with enough force. How much force may vary on the object — for some, it's a simple tap of the hand. For others, a hard punch. Or perhaps you'd need a _supernova._

But even then, _nothing_ is completely indestructible. 

There's no material like that which exists. So... we had to _create_ one. But our minds? Our minds alone couldn't hope to do something like that... 

So it's a good thing we got some help. 

Though unwilling, Master Porky yielded to our request for some assistance, telling us that he would assign some_ 'special servants' _of his, to help.

And as it turns out, special was the right word.

"BoInG! zOOm!"

For those special servants were none other than _Mr Saturn._

"Mr... Saturn?"

"Where on earth did the king find them?"

And then it hits me... "The Thunder Tower... there's a Saturn Valley nearby!"

Dr Andonuts clenches in his fists, in... what seems to be _anger? _He seems to want to say something, but eventually he just sits down.

"I suppose the king enlisted them to help us... well, I can't say we'll find much better help than them."

"What? The Mr Saturn? They're our best help for this?"

"Indeed. Don't forget that the Saturns have the most intelligent minds when it comes to this kind of thing..."

"wE Mr sATuRN!"

"... even if they do not appear like it."

Well... this is certainly an odd form of help, but... let's see what happens. It could be a good way of finding out more about them.

We inform the Saturns of what we aim to do, which they understand — or at least, I _think_ they do... it's hard to tell.

From there on, it's up to us to create a completely indestructible material. I wrack my brain and databanks to try and come up with something as a starting point... and I managed to find one.

"Dr Andonuts?"

"Hm?"

"I have an idea... but it involves one of your creations."

"Go ahead."

"Your Phase Distorter."

Dr Andonuts's eyes widen, but he doesn't say anything, so I go on. 

"To withstand being able to pass through the fabric of time, it must have been rather durable itself. Perhaps we could use it as a base? It isn't indestructible, but it would serve as a good starting point."

He ponders it over for a while, before sighing. "Certainly a good idea... however, we do not have one."

"Well, why don't we make one then?"

"Hm... it is possible and with the technological expertise of the Saturns, it shouldn't be too hard."

"Do we have all the materials we need?"

"All but one, I believe — a very rare material known as Zexonyte."

Zexonyte... where on Earth are we gonna get that? Let's see if my databanks have anything...

_'Zexonyte. Foreign material, generally only found in meteorites. Though harmless in nature, it can be used in large amounts to break the fourth dimension.'_

"Meteorites? Where are we going to find any of those?"

"Hahaha, you've gone a little bit too far, haven't you? If you think about it, we won't actually need any."

"Why not?"

"You see, Zexonyte is only needed for the Phase Distorter to be able to travel through time and space."

"Ah, and we have no need for the time travelling elements of the machine!"

"Yep. So we should be able to make this with what we have."

And so we got to work — building a Phase Distorter. 

Without the components for movement through space - time though, we had more space inside of it, enough to put the things we need for life support, including the ultraviolet laser.

Still, even if it were to move through space - time, we know it would be to withstand it, as it is made from the same materials as the Phase Distorter.

Something peculiar I notice during this all however is regarding the Saturns — they're able to build it rather quickly for us. I was aware of their technological expertise, but even then, I would have thought it would have taken more than a week for them to do so. They seem to be familiar with this kind of work.

"Doctor, you said the Saturns helped you realise time travel... but how exactly did they do that?"

"Why, they helped me build this the first time."

"... they helped you build the Phase Distorter?"

"Yes. The very first one I made... I wouldn't have been able to have done it without them. Ah, it brings back old memories... if only that red gentleman was here..."

"Hm?"

"Oh, don't mind me. Just the ramblings of an old man."

The Saturns finish the Phase Distorter quickly enough — they've even made it on their own likeness, making it look like a metallic Saturn... just like in _Earthbound._

In fact... the Saturns made the Phase Distorter in the movie as well, didn't they? Hm... interesting...

When we finish, we make sure the life support systems could feasibly run on renewable energy, and it's a good thing we did, because we find a problem.

See, they wouldn't be able to _safely_ run on renewable energy — while they _would_ have enough energy, that's only assuming at least _one_ source of renewable energy is present, so if there isn't... well, it wouldn't be absolutely safe, would it?

But the Saturns prove themselves to a valuable asset once again — with their help, we create a _perpetual _motion machine, something which, according to Dr Andonuts, shouldn't _exist._

From what I understand, a perpetual motion machine is essentially a source of... _infinite_ energy. It creates energy from nothing, which I'm fairly sure violates a _number_ of laws in physics... like the conservation of energy?

And yet, somehow... it exists! 

We use it to power the machine — it'll be particularly useful for the ultraviolet laser. This leaves... the actual capsule itself.

"How do we create something durable to everything?"

"Well, we have many durable materials now. It's possible that we could create something durable by combining them together."

Dr Andonuts pulls up a simulation, showing many different materials, first being what looks like diamond.

"Diamond. The hardest natural, organic substance known to man."

He switches it to show an image of molecules arranged in a disordered lattice.

"Metallic glass. One of the hardest man made substances that we've created."

"Metallic _glass? _That doesn't sound like it would be durable at all."

"It's a bit of a misnomer — they're metal alloys which have a crystalline structure similar to glass. Incredibly durable stuff too because of that."

"Amazing..."

"And next... ah..."

Dr Andonuts pauses when he reaches the next thing. 

It's something I've seen before, something... something I know all too well. A material that's long, sharp and pearl white...

A Drago Fang.

At the end, there appears to be blood... is that blood... mine? No, no, it's not there, it's just an image, a hologram. It's not real... right?

At first, I wonder why Dr Andonuts would consider using one of these.

But then, I remember something which Master Porky told me a long time ago... when I first met him.

"_You see, a Drago Fang is strong enough to pierce through anything."_

And while I imagine he was exaggerating a little, there's still has to be some truth in that... Drago Fangs are incredibly durable, and their hides are said to be almost equally so as well...

"... it makes sense to include these. They are very durable, and so would be useful."

Dr Andonuts pauses for a second, perhaps a silent acknowledgement of the significance of this particular material to me, before he moves on.

"And finally, I thought we might consider using the materials we used for some of the chimeras. Some of the mechanical ones have impressive qualities, such as invulnerability to PSI, as well as considerable durability to begin with."

"They'd make for a good starting point in all this then."

"Indeed. I think that's all the useful materials then... now all we need to do is combine them."

And somehow, with considerable help from the Saturns, and nearly two weeks of solid work, we finally manage to synthesize a... a material none of us have ever seen before. Is... is this it? An indestructible material? 

All of us are in disbelief that we could have actually accomplished this, so we test it. Against _everything._

Industrial lasers, rockets, PSI... nothing even _scratches_ it! 

It's... it's impossible! But the more we try, the more it seems like we've actually done it. We've actually created something completely indestructible! And this was just a small sample of it! 

We spend a day celebrating the event, before we realise a harsh truth — we'll need a _lot_ more for the capsule. 

So, we get straight back to it, making more as quickly as we can. We know how to make it know, but the sheer quantity of material means it'll take more time.

Finally, after a month, we finish producing more of the material, casting it into a spherical shape and fixing it onto the Phase Distorter.

"Pass me that spanner, would you?"

"Here. Do you think we'll finish in time?"

"I hope so! The king doesn't react well when things aren't done on time..."

Hmm... I'd always seen Master Porky as a rather reasonable figure of authority — surely he would understand if extensions are needed? 

"Still, with the help of the Mr Saturns, we should be able to, right?"

"I think so, yes. Ahh... it's just like old times..."

"What do you mean?"

"Pushing the boundaries of science, with the help of the Saturns... mind you, I don't think these are the same ones I knew, but... I can't help but see the similarity between it all."

"What's it like to do this kind of work then?"

"Funny you should ask. It's a lot different from what it was like back in my time."

"Different conditions?"

"Hm, that's one part of it. I can't say that the king isn't a generous employer — everything here's _ten_ times as advanced as what I had back in my laboratory in Winters. But, this kind of work... I do like it. Pushing the boundaries of science to see what can be done... that's why I became a scientist. Sadly, I rarely have an opportunity to do things like this anymore."

"Because of the chimeras?"

"Yes. I've never been too fond of working with on them, but the king feels my talents are best suited with them."

"But it is a progression of science, isn't it?"

"Yes... but it's also a subversion of nature. To combine two creatures into one, or augment another with machinery... it goes against nature. To twist and turn something so much until it isn't recognisable anymore... I've never exactly felt comfortable with it."

"... neither have I."

Dr Andonuts stops his work, looking at me apologetically. "My apologies... I must have offended you."

"It's fine... I can't say I don't agree with your sentiment."

Because I _do_ see where the doctor is coming from. It's something I've _always_ had trouble grasping, since the day I was created — the fact that I am as equal part machinery, as I am living, organic tissue. 

Actually... there's a good chance I'm more _machine_ than human at this point, isn't there?

I wonder... what part of me _isn't_ machine? Because on an external level, it might seem like it's not all that much at all — just my left eye, an arm, and my back.

But _internally? _It's likely so much more than I'm even imagining. My lungs, my bones... heck, as Miss Marsh proved during our trek through the Death Desert, possibly even my _heart._

What _isn't_ replaceable then? What makes me... _me? _Well... the mind. That's the only thing that's truly mine, isn't it? Everything I am, everything I have... all of it can be replaced. 

But not my mind. That's... all I have. Right? 

So... what happens if I lose that as well? What happens if I lose the central part of myself, the part that can never be replaced? I... I don't know.

"My sincerest apologies... I understand it's a... perplexing issue to say the least."

That's one way of putting it. "Do not worry about me, Doctor. Though I would prefer to live without my parts, I do not resent them or you, merely the people and the situation that forced me to live with them. After all, these parts and you both saved my life. I'm grateful for that if nothing else."

"You're most certainly welcome."

"Have you been working on any other chimeras then, Doctor?"

"Yes... just a few things here and there, I suppose..."

"You wouldn't happen to have had anything to do with those roars I keep hearing all over the place?”

He chuckles lightly before responding. "I'm not surprised you asked about that. We're attempting to make a new kind of chimera, one unique from all others."

"Like me?"

"In a way. But while you are mechanical, this one is a biological chimera.

"What makes it unique then?"

"We only use two animals for chimeras... but this one's different — because we're using _more_ than just _two."_

More than two? What kind of creature would this chimera end up looking like then?

"How many animals are you using?"

Dr Andonuts sighs in what seems like disappointment. "Do you know, at this point, I have no idea how many. We've picked parts from so many different creatures that I couldn't even tell you. All the best parts of every animal, combined into one being."

"So, you're creating some sort of... _ultimate_ chimera then?"

"Hm... we've been calling it 'The Super Duper Big, Bad, Rough Chimera' as per the king's request for what we were to make, but ultimate is a lot shorter... yes, that's essentially what we're trying to do. But we'll talk of chimeras another time... we still have to finish this."

"Yes, let's focus on the task at hand."

Soon enough, we're able to finally finish molding it into the necessary shape. And when we do... it...

It's... it's a capsule, yes, but not what we imagined it to be...

It's a grotesque sphere with marks and parts ladened across it... but that's not even the scariest part.

Every second, it seems to pulse, as if it had a heart that was beating...

It almost seems to be... alive? It's... like a chimera, unnatural in its very state and misshapen beyond recognition. In fact... I can't help but think of the machine Giygas himself used... the Devil's Machine, was it? 

It's... it's unnerving for me, but Dr Andonuts seems _terrified_ by it, as if it's the kind of noise he's heard in his nightmares or something, the kind of sound that you hear once, and never want to hear again. Even the Saturns break their carefree nature and are silent during this entire thing.

"I think... it could use a coat of paint."

"Agreed. I don't think the king would be too fond of how it looks right now..."

So, with as much haste as we can, we make the finishing touches and paint it a shiny grey — we let the Saturns do it, and they certainly have a lot of fun doing so. The Pigmask insignia is the final touch, and then it's almost done... when I remember something, something we may have forgotten.

"Doctor?"

"Yes?"

"This capsule... how would you open it?"

"There's a button on the side here."

"Yes... but there's an issue with that. Once his Highness is inside of there, if you could open the capsule... then you could hurt him. And so... it wouldn't be absolutely safe."

"... indeed. That's why you _can't."_

What? You can't open it up once you're inside of... inside of it. Oh God... once you're inside... you can't go back _out. _Because it wouldn't be absolutely safe, would it? If you could go out, it's not absolutely safe.

Which means... if you can't die inside, then...

"... you'd be stuck inside for all eternity, wouldn't you?"

"Exactly. The end of the world could come, and... you'd be still be alive. The entire universe could implode, and you'd still be just fine. But there would be no one else. No one to talk to, no one to interact. You'd be just... all alone. Stuck inside this capsule, this _prison, _for all eternity."

"That's... that's _horrifying."_

"It is. But that's what the king will do to evade death."

"Would he really choose that?"

"I... don't know. For his sake... I would hope not. But... one thing I have learned about the king is this — he never asks for anything to be made, unless he intends to use it."

"Do warn him of that then... to be quite honest, I'm scared of what we've made here."

"As am I. But... there's nothing we can do now. After all, we can't get rid of it, because it _is_ absolutely safe."

"Doctor... what would you choose? Would you chose death... or this?"

"Death, in a heartbeat. After all, there's no point in living, if there's no one left to live with you. What about you?"

"I think... I think I would choose the same."

Dr Andonuts nods his head in understanding. "A wise choice... I believe we're done here then. Thank you so much for your help — I must say, you've got a rather innovative mind. If you weren't becoming Commander, I'd be half tempted to ask you to stay on at this laboratory... it'd be nice to have some company and a helper with my work."

"I appreciate the compliment, but I think my talents are better served as the Commander. Still, if we do end this war, and my services are no longer needed... perhaps I might consider taking you up on that offer."

"You're always welcome to... but do be sure to take care of yourself. It's no good working hard if you work yourself to the grave."

"I will."

And with that, I leave the room, meeting back with the two majors that have been escorting me all this time.

It's strange... we may have succeeded in our task despite all the odds... and yet, I don't feel accomplished at all. It feels like we've failed... even though we've succeeded.

Because we haven't just created the world's greatest protection.

We've created world's greatest prison as well. Impenetrable to anything, sustaining the inhabitant for eternity... anything inside may be absolutely safe... but the reverse is true as well, isn't it? Anything outside, is absolutely safe from anything_ inside._

Absolutely Safe Capsule.. it doesn't do a thing. It does no harm to anyone inside or outside of it, and yet... it may very well be the most powerful weapon in existence.

What have we created?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pure terror, Claus. Pure terror.
> 
> First thing I've put out for the New Year then, and for Behind The Mask no less. It's been a while since I've done anything for this story — I've been very focused on A Third Of Love.
> 
> So... Absolutely Safe Capsule. First things first, yes, the Masked Man is never stated to have a part in making the ASC, but you know what, I don't care — though at this point, I think this story is more or less a reimagining of the Masked Man's role in Mother 3. 
> 
> This one was... hard to write. Interesting, yes, but hard to write. I tried to be as scientific as possible when figuring out how the ASC could feasibly be built, but it's a literal paradox, so I kinda had to throw in the towel at a certain point — I think it was somewhere around perpetual motion machines...
> 
> The creation of it is something that fascinates me — something I couldn't necessarily say in this story itself, is that I think the ASC is basically a buffed up Devil's Machine. They both seem to be impenetrable prisons — but of course, the ASC can't be opened.
> 
> Other than that, a little bit of expanding on Dr Andonuts's relationship with the Masked Man — it's a very odd one, I must admit, but... hey, I think it works.
> 
> Next time, Claus takes a trip and gets to visit... home.


	18. Mom’s Hometown

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claus visits the heart of the enemy, learning many new things about himself.

Let's see... a little ketchup on the bacon, and... done! 

Nine minutes and fifty-two seconds... that's the fastest I've made breakfast for Master Porky yet!

It looks quite nice as well — I think Miss Marsh would be proud of how far I've come.

I gather everything onto one plate and knock on Master Porky's door, placing the food in its usual spot. Though he doesn't respond today, he's actually been responding a lot more often recently, ever since we finished work on the Absolutely Safe Capsule.

He was very pleased with it — it seemed to meet all of his expectations and more, which I'm glad of. It's always a pleasure to be able to do something for him.

A few weeks have passed since then and life has returned mostly back to normal. However, I've stopped my training with Fassad for the moment — see, apparently he's been going back to Tazmily, scoping out the area for us.

Though I may not necessarily like him, I must respect him for having the courage to go to such a vile place.

But because of this, I'm not having any training with him, at least until he gets back, so I've mostly been working with my regiment.

Speaking of which, I really should get going there. With a final bite, I finish my omelet before heading down the elevator of the Empire Porky Building, and flying off to the training facility, remembering what we're doing today on the way there.

Apparently, the Fierce Pork Trooper wants to go on a_ 'field trip',_ whatever that means. He says he wants to assess my ability to command the troops outside the confines of where the Pigmasks have control, and on the field. I wonder where exactly he intends to take us then...

When I arrive, I head to the usual area, where my regiment is. Fourteen of them are all surrounding the fifteenth, all praising her. I'm confused as to why, until I see it — the green uniform she's wearing.

Over the course of the years, all the Pigmasks in my regiment have been gradually promoted to Captains. However, this is the first one to be promoted to a _Major._ Though happy for her, we _do_ have business to attend to. 

I lightly clear my throat, the regiment turning towards me and assembling into a line.

"Sir!" I'm greeted with fifteen salutes and look around, nodding approvingly. While doing so, I notice the Fierce Pork Trooper isn't here yet. 

This wouldn't normally be a surprise — since I've come back from working on the ASC, the Fierce Pork Trooper has given _me_ control over what the regiment does for training, giving me more responsibility over my squad of Pigmasks. 

He occasionally comes in to see how we're all doing, but for the most part, I'm the one in charge... it's a strange place to be in to say the least.

However, he _should_ be here _today..._ I suppose he's running late. We may as well make the most of the time we have.

"Very good. Firstly, I believe congratulations are in order, Major. You deserve your position."

"Thank you, sir."

"In any case then, you are all aware of our schedule, so you should know what we will be doing — today, we shall be at the firing range. Though you have all made substantial improvements in your aim, I believe your skill with explosives could use some work. Any questions?"

A few of the Pigmasks raise their hands, and I suspect they all have the same question, so I address one of them.

"Yes?"

"Sir, I thought we were going on a field trip with the Fierce Pork Trooper?"

"Indeed. However, he has not arrived yet, and I see no reason to waste this valuable time, so hence we will be training until then."

The rest of the Pigmasks lower their hands, satisfied with the answer, though not so much at what it means for them. We all head to the other side of the facility, passing along the entrance, where I ask a Pigmask there to inform me when the Fierce Pork Trooper arrives.

When we reach the firing range, each of the Pigmasks collect a supply of bombs and practice their aim with them. Of course, it's quite dangerous, so I make sure they only practice in groups of three. 

As for myself, I decide to also practice my aim with bombs — I prefer to use my arm cannon for long range, but the utility of bombs and the area they cover is something I cannot overlook.

Either way, after about half an hour, a monitor on the wall starts to sound, so I answer it.

"Commander?"

"Yes?"

"The Trooper has arrived. He's waiting outside the building for your unit."

"Thank you. Please inform him that we will be there shortly." 

"Yes, one more thing though, Commander."

"What is it?"

"The Trooper has requested that you wear the uniform of a colonel for your trip. Is that suitable?"

Hm... that's interesting. This isn't the first time I've done this — in fact, I've worn one to every DCMC concert I've been to. But that was for the sake of hiding my identity from the people of Tazmily who could have recognised me... so does that mean the area we're going to will have those people?

"That will be fine. Thank you." I reply, shutting the device off.

I turn to the Pigmasks and signal them all to stop.

"Good work. Collect all your supplies and report to the entrance in ten minutes."

"Yes, sir!"

I myself head to obtain the white mask, armor and cloak of the colonels, putting it on — interestingly enough, they've fitted in a voice modulator into the mask. 

I head outside the training facility, joining the rest of the Pigmasks. Each of us saluting the Fierce Pork Trooper, including myself. I'm not sure if I need to, given that Commander is a higher title than what the Fierce Pork Trooper has, but I don't have it yet, and even if I did... well, he deserves the respect.

The Fierce Pork Trooper walks around us all, looking at us each individually. Each person tenses a little bit when he gets closer, relaxing when he leaves. 

Suddenly, out of nowhere, he starts _tickling_ one of the Pigmasks, causing them to break their salute and fall to the ground in the surprise.

The Fierce Pork Trooper bursts into laughter, and the rest of the Pigmasks do so as well, while still maintaining their salute.

"There's a free lesson for you maggots — tickling your opponent is a great way to lower the defences. Especially if they're not expecting it!"

The Fierce Pork Trooper offers a hand to his fallen comrade, helping him back up.

"Alright, loosen up a little. It's not like it's a funeral!"

He turns and looks to me. "That goes for you as well, kid. I swear you don't need to salute me... I mean, you _are_higher up than me."

At his request, I drop the stance, and face him.

"Not yet. And even if I did, it is my respect for you, sir."

The Fierce Pork Trooper looks a little bit taken aback by that, almost flattered.

"Hm. Well, I'm sure you're all eager to find out what we're up to. So get in, and let's get outta here!"

There's two Porkships behind the Fierce Pork Trooper, so half of us scramble into one, and the other scrambles into another.

The Porkships take off and after about five minutes in the air, there's an incoming video from the other Porkships. When it opens, we see the interior of the other ship, identical to ours, except the Fierce Pork Trooper is front and center.

"Alright, enough fun and games! We're actually going on some _real_ business here, so I want your heads on straight."

The Pigmasks in both Porkships immediately go silent at that, and I myself start to become more attentive.

"So, I bet you're all wondering where we're going. Well, for now, that's a surprise. But I will tell you what we're up to. You see... we're heading on a reconnaissance mission."

"We're collecting information?"

"That's right... and potentially more as well."

"On who?"

"Who do you think, kid? The enemy."

The _enemy? _But that would be...

"... the people of Tazmily?"

"Correct. We're heading into territory that they have occupied. And so, let me make one thing clear — this is _not_ a combat mission. Do you understand that? We're _not_ here to harm them — not unless they attack us, or we're given orders to do so."

"Why? Why don't we simply run them all into the ground?!"

"Let me explain then. You know what Fassad's been doing for the past few weeks?"

"Yes, he's been going to Tazmily Village, and scouting the place out, hasn't he?"

"More than that. He's been establishing some... ah, what _are_ they... ah, diplomatic ties."

"Diplomatic ties? We've been at war with them for the past two years, haven't we? We built the Thunder Tower solely to give ourselves the advantages we needed! Why on Earth would we make friends with them, when we have the advantage?"

"What can I say? The king works in mysterious ways. I think he's considering whether or not it'd be worth more lost lives."

_"I am not without mercy. And those who accept the changes and have been previously misguided, they will be welcomed into New Pork City."_

Yes, he was entertaining that notion when I saw him at the Thunder Tower... not just for the sake of _our_ lives, but _theirs_ as well.

"Anyway, they've agreed that they won't attack us, so long as we don't attack them."

"And do we intend to stick to that agreement?"

"For now? Yes. But ask me that question in a few months time... and maybe I'll have a different answer for you. But right now, this is purely a recon mission."

"Isn't that what Fassad's supposed to be doing though?"

"It is, but one man can't do everything. He says there's something we need to investigate and obtain, but the villagers are a little wary of him already, so we've gotta help him out. Either way, do _not_ fire on any of the civilians there. We're not here to start a fight. Signing out."

He disappears, leaving us all in silence as we head to our destination. Soon enough, the two Porkships land. It's only now that I realise that though the Fierce Pork Trooper informed us we'd be heading into enemy territory, he never said exactly _where_ that would be.

And he most certainly didn't say that it would be at the _heart_ of it.

When the Porkship opens, my eyes are greeted with a number of sights. Blue skies that stretch as far as you can see, the sun shining all around. Grass sprawls across the land, looking as fresh as can be. Rivers flowed throughout the place, wild and free.

When I take a step off the Porkship onto land, I know exactly where I am. This is... 

_"I'm gonna get so strong..."_

... my _past_. This _was_...

_"... that even Dragos won't stand a chance against me!"_

... my _home. _This_ is..._

_Memory units engaged. Query?_

Tazmily Village.

The rest of the Pigmasks disembark, including the Fierce Pork Trooper. Without looking at me, he starts to talk.

"Were you expecting this then, kid?"

"... not exactly. I wasn't expecting to be here, of all places."

"Well... it's about time you came here."

But before we can progress any further in our conversation, a Pigmask Major approaches our group, huffing and puffing all the whole. They look at the Fierce Pork Trooper and salute him.

"Sir! And..." They turn towards me, looking a bit confused, before it seems to click for them. "And you must be the Commander, yes?"

"Indeed."

"You've all arrived on time. We've set up some spots for you all in the barracks, so if you'd like to follow me."

And so we do — they're fairly similar to the ones on the training facility. I suppose that makes sense though, since this is a training ground as well. 

It's actually been a long time since I've shared a place with another person, but I actually welcome it — it's been very lonely in New Pork City, so it's nice to be with my regiment again.

Once we're all settled in, the Major comes back for a briefing.

"Where's Fassad?" asks the Fierce Pork Trooper.

"Fassad's in town, talking with the people. Trying to make friends and all. He's usually back here at five in the evening." the Major replies.

"I see... alright, you're all dismissed for now. Report back here at 17 hundred hours. And don't leave the town."

"Yes, sir!"

The Pigmasks all disperse and I...

This town... it... it was my home, wasn't it? I've never been here, since I've forgotten it all...

What... what is it like? What are the people like? I've... I've heard only stories and takes about this village, the cruelty of the people, but... I've never seen it for myself. And this is my first chance to do so.

When I step out, I look around, wondering where to go. It's not like New Pork City, confined and organised. Buildings sprawl amongst these grassy fields, though there seem to be a bunch to the west... some sort of town centre.

Yet, there's also a solitary building to the north, which looks rather derelict... it doesn't appear all that inhabitable.

I walk up there, setting an alarm to make sure I'm back on time. When I get there, there's a sign... 'Old Man's Home'.

So... _this_ is how the people of Tazmily treat their elders then. With such contemptuous disrespect. Pitiful...

I decide to go to the west after and... it's more _urbanised_ than I thought it would be. I was told that the village was fairly rural and uncivilised, and yet, there are shops, restaurants and even a hotel.

Mind you, it still doesn't compare to the monumental _glory_ of New Pork City, but... it's more than I was expecting. 

They were so stuck in the past, weren't they? Unless... I remember. They stole some of this technology, didn't they? After rejecting it initially... they took it. That's what Master Porky said... despicable.

As I walk through the town, I get a few looks from the civilians — according to Fassad, the Pigmasks have been here for some time, so I thought they would have gotten used to them. I suppose not... or perhaps they have never seen a Colonel before. 

To the north, the first thing that strikes me is the railway in the village. Hm... they've advanced _much_ more than I thought they would have. 

There's a few people boarding a train right now, and after they do, the train starts to leave, heading through a tunnel on the east.

"Excuse me? Sir, are you waiting for a train? There won't be another one for some time."

"Oh, I'm sorry, I was a little lost in thought."

He laughs, as if he understands that. "Happens to the best of us. Are you waiting for a train then?"

"No... but could you tell me where this train goes to?"

"It only has one stop — the East End Station near the Clayman Factory Grounds."

The Clayman Factory Grounds? I've been there before myself, but why would these people be going there?

"Why do people want to go there?"

He looks at me, partially confused. "Why, to work! Ever since you've all come here, people have been going there every day for some hard earned DP!"

They adopted Dragon Power as well then... so money has been introduced.

"I see. Well, it's good that we're able to be more friendly with each other."

"Oh yes, it is. This place was a lot more different in the past, but you know? I think I like it a bit more now."

Wow! I... wasn't expecting that. "Really?"

"Yeah... technology's pretty cool, isn't it?"

"Perhaps you should consider moving to New Pork then. It's much bigger than this place."

"You know, I might! Maybe if I save up enough DP, I can move there... yeah, wouldn't that be great? Anyway, sorry to bother you."

He goes back to his position on the platform.

He... he seemed really nice, actually. Not at all like the barbaric people I saw in Master Porky's video or the people I've heard about. I actually... _enjoyed_ talking to him. Interesting.

Feeling a little bit happier, I decide to go to the west, seeing a _giant_ bell tower... how tall would you need to be to ring that?! Either that, or you'd need a really big ladder. 

The bell itself is pretty big as well, and judging by the amount of rust on it, it seems to be fairly old. I imagine the sound of it would echo across the entire island...

Further to the west is a pathway that leads to a forest — the Sunshine Forest, I believe, which I... oh...

It... it wasn't my fault. It... it was an accident. I... I didn't have control over my powers... I didn't mean to do it!

But... _they_ thought I _did._

Maybe... maybe it would be for the best if I didn't go there then. 

But there is a building here... a grey one, that looks very old fashioned — I'm guessing it was built before the industrial revolution that Tazmily has undergone.

When I step inside, it's eerily quiet. The sound of my footsteps echo throughout the room, softer each time.

At the center of this building is a mural, which depicts a dragon.

There's some writing, but it's indecipherable to me... perhaps my scanners would have better luck.

_Scanning text... scan complete. _

_'Of beauties, of wonders, of great power, no man has seen more than in the Dark Dragon.'_

Dark Dragon? What on Earth is that? In fact... haven't I heard that name somewhere before? It's slipping my mind... I hate when that happens.

Dragons... this island. I... I remember during a vacation I had, I flew rather high and... it looked like a dragon.

Is that what this Dark Dragon is? The island _itself?_

I head back to the town square, walking to the west of Tazmily, where I can see a beach to the south, the sea coming in and out. Though the tide is low, I do my best to stay away from it — a sudden wave wouldn't do well for me, given all my metal parts. Even if I'm wearing this suit, it's not worth the risk.

I take a look out to the sea, and I can just see a faint speck of land in the distance... I think that's Tanetane Island?

"Ohh, that's horrible!"

"Yes, truly a misfortune."

I turn to the north, seeing a group of people surrounding a building, but they're obscuring my vision. When I approach, I see what they're staring at — it's a building... or at least, it _was._

The remains of it look scorched, as it was burned to the ground... actually, there's about six scorched holes around the building as well. What happened?

"Excuse me, but... what happened to this building?"

"Oh, well, it was unfortunately destroyed a few months ago by lightning."

"By _lightning?"_

"Yes — it got struck right on the top by a massive bolt of it! In fact, as you can see, the lightning got some places around as well." 

But none of the other buildings around here seem to be destroyed, and _seven_ bolts hitting around this _specific _area? That's way too precise for lightning... 

The Thunder Tower. So _that's_ what they're using the laser for... it's certainly effective. Clever as well — to these people, it just seems like lightning. But for us, it's a brilliant advantage in our war...

A part of me does feel the slightest twinge of guilt... I hope no one was hurt.

No, wait... I do. I should hope someone was hurt, that one of these people died in it... 

But... I don't know. They don't... seem all that bad. They seem... nice enough.

Shaking the thoughts in my head, I decide to keep walking along the beach, seeing another building... a Sheriff's Office.

So, this is where the scum of Tazmily are kept then, the criminals. Hm... I'm surprised it's not bigger — I'd have thought there'd be _plenty_ of people to fill these cells. 

Plenty of worthless, disgusting...

_"I'm gonna leave this apple here."_

Barbaric, inhumane...

_"The core might be hard, but..."_

Filthy, hypocritical...

_"The core... the core might be too hard to eat, but be sure you eat it!"_

**_(Dad...)_ **

_System error. First failsafe online._

I... but surely they can't all be that bad... maybe...

Maybe they just acted wrong... lashed out at the time, a moment of weakness.

I... I... I think I'll pass entering. Besides... it's probably not wise to enter a place like this without good reason to.

I head further to the west, where there are a few houses by the beach, but also an area of the beach with some lawn chairs and parasols. In fact, I can even see some children playing around on the beach, some of them paddling in the sea, while others on the sand pass a ball between each other. 

Right now, a girl with brown hair is passing the ball to a glasses wearing boy. There's somewhat of a resemblance between the two... perhaps they're related?

The boy then passes it to another brown haired boy, who tries to throw back to the first girl, but he's a little too enthusiastic about it and overshoots, the ball landing in the sea and sending a bunch of water in the air, splashing one girl swimming in it.

The three land bound children all laugh at this, while the girl in the sea shakes her head, frowning at the boy who threw the ball.

"Fuel! Watch where you're throwing this thing!"

"Sorry, Alle..." 

With a huff, she threw the ball back at the boy, hitting him square in the face, much to her amusement.

They continued playing, until one of the boys looked at a blonde girl, who was sitting on one of the chairs watching them.

"Hey, Nana, why don't ya join us?"

The girl... Nana, looked down at the sand and quietly responded. Oh... I'm alright... I'll probably just get in your way."

"Aw, come on! It'll be fun!"

At her continued reluctance, the other children try to persuade her to join, before she eventually gives in... she joins them and seems to be having fun. That... that was rather kind of them, to include her...

These children... I don't know how old they are, but... they look around my age. I wonder... did I know them once? 

"Woah!" 

The same boy who hit the girl in the sea throws that ball a little bit too enthusiastically once more. The ball goes soaring through the air, heading towards... _me! _I instinctively reach for my stick, preparing to smack it out of the sky... wait... it's not there! 

Ow! It hits me straight in the face, knocking my mask loose. Ohh... now I remember... I left my stick at the barracks, because this was supposed to be a _peaceful_ mission...

The kid who threw the ball runs up to me, apologising profusely.

"Sorry, mister! Are you alright?"

I rub my mask a bit, straightening it, and making sure it doesn't fall off... that was close.

"I'm alright. You've a pretty strong throwing arm, don't you?"

"Yeah... my dad's always said I'd grow up to be pretty strong. Hope you didn't get hurt."

"Well, these masks _are_ meant to protect us."

By now, the other children had come out of the sea and approached us, one of the girls pointing at me and gasping.

"Hey... isn't that one of those soldiers around town?" she whispered to her friend.

"It is... but they look different from all the other ones..." she whispered back.

The boy turns around hearing his friends, before turning back to me. "So... why do you look different from the others then?"

"Oh? Well, that's because I'm a higher rank then all the others. The highest rank, in fact."

"Woah! That's impressive!"

I smile a little on the inside. "Why, thank you."

"And that cloak's really cool! I haven't seen any other soldiers wear them."

"Only we colonels get to wear this."

"Woah... I'd love to wear one of those."

"Well, you're a little young right now, but maybe in the future, you could join us." 

There's an obvious hypocrisy in that statement, given the fact that it's coming from _me, _but to be fair, most children haven't been augmented with machinery in the same way I have.

"Really?"

"Indeed! You might even be wearing one of these in the future."

I pick up their ball on the sand and hand it back to them. "But for now, you're still young. Here. Have fun."

"Thanks!"

With that, I walk back up the steps onto grassy land. The cliffs look out to the sea, but it's otherwise a dead end, so I head back to the town square.

On my way, I can't help but think more about those children... for a town that has spawned much evil, these children seem perfectly nice. 

Their lives... they're so simple. So much simpler than mine. Surely, they cannot be too from my age... and yet, we're so different. While they worry about school, I worry about battle. While they play games, I play tactics. And while they have families, I... I _don't._

I don't _have_ a family. Apart from the one that abandoned me. But... does that have to be family? No... family are the people you care about, and the people who care for you.

My regiment, the Fierce Pork Trooper, Dr Andonuts, Miss Marsh and Master Porky. They... they're the people I care about. Does that make _them_ family then? I... I don't know. 

I've always wondered what my life could have been... what my life could have been if things were different. If I was one of those children... it would be so much simpler, wouldn't it? I wouldn't be the Commander... I'd just be... _normal. _A normal person.

But would I want that? After all, if fate had not lead me down the path it did... I wouldn't have met all the people in my life I have. I'd be blind and ignorant to all the struggles of the world. 

But ignorance _is_ bliss, isn't it?

It's a shame for these children... their innocent hearts must be twisted by their parents, until they become like them. And then it repeats onto their children, a continuous cycle.

But maybe... maybe they can be helped. They're still young, and still impressionable. With the right guidance, their hearts could be turned. 

Back in the town centre, I notice a lot of people are gathered around in the very centre of the area, and there's someone at the front, talking... oh _no..._

"People of Tazmily! We have done much on this town, yet there is still more work to be done! Bolts of lightning strike down here, and we have the solution! The Happy Boxes! Haven't you seen that those with them seem to be perfectly safe? That's because these boxes ward away all forms of lightning, _and_ they entertain you!"

I was wondering when I'd see Fassad today. I was hoping never, but I never do seem to be _that_ lucky. Even in this disguise, Fassad's sure to have been told what I'd look like. Thankfully, he's so engrossed and focused on his speech to the people right now that he doesn't notice me at all, so I slip away and head to the south.

The south is another dead end, another cliff that overlooks the sea, though this one lacks a beach nearby. It's a very quiet area compared to the rest of Tazmily — while the rest of the village has gone through some urbanisation, this part still remains relatively naturalistic. I wonder if this is what the vast majority of Tazmily was like two years ago...

Though I'm familiar with the atmosphere of New Pork and enjoy it, I... I don't... _dislike_ this one either. There's a certain charm to nature that can only be captured when in its purest form — when it's completely untouched by us.

I hide amongst some trees, before lying down on the ground. Hm... I'm taking a large risk here, but...

Making sure there's no one anywhere nearby, I take my mask off... that feels so much better! These things really do get really musty after a while.

Closing my eyes, I take in all my surroundings.

It's... it's calming. There's no one else here... it's just the trees on the plains, the sun in the sky, the wind in my hair, the smell of the sea... 

I... it feels so familiar... it feels like... it's so beautiful...

I... I put my mask back on — it was pretty risky to do that... I really shouldn't have.

As I keep walking, I notice that there's a house — just the one, but it's a surprise to see one so far from all the others.

Curious, I keep walking towards it, the back of the house coming more and more into focus as I get closer. After turning a bend, I get a frontal view of it.

It... it's not just a house, or at least, it _wasn't_ just a house.

There's a crater next to the house, and smoldering wooden debris scattered nearby... the remains of a lightning strike from the Thunder Tower. Next to the wreckage are a number of sheep, doing their normal business.

Did... did they live in what that was before? The wreckage... whatever it was before, was that what they lived in?

It... it's just dawned on me that we're... we're destroying _homes. _The homes that these people have worked hard to build... and we're sending them straight to the ground.

But... but they _deserved_ this, right? The cruelty, the injustice, the _pain_ they showed to the Pigmask Army, to Master Porky, to _me... _this was simply revenge. Every action... has a consequence. And this was theirs... right?

But now... now, we're no longer at war with them. We've entered a truce... but will they honour it? Should we? Should _we_ honour it, or break it... because they might do the same.

And yet... I can't help but feel that they won't. Because after everything I've seen... there are good people here, aren't they? It's not just pure evil, like I once thought... and do they deserve to suffer? Do many innocents deserve to suffer for the sake of a few guilty?

I... I don't know.

With a sigh, I turn to the house itself. Compared to the rest of the houses I've seen, this one seems very old fashioned. It's made almost entirely of wood... it doesn't seem to have changed at all.

There's a kennel enclosed by it, and inside a... a brown dog... it... have I seen it before?

Right now, it's sleeping peacefully... I walk past it as quietly as I can, trying not to walk it up.

And this house... it...

_"Alright boys, be on your best behavior for your mother and grandfather."_

What... is it about it, that's so... 

_"Of course! I'm looking forward to seeing him again."_

So... special?

_"But it's a shame you can't go with us, Dad..."_

Who... who lives here?

_System error. Second failsafe online._

I... 

** _(Lucas...)_ **

With a start, I snap back to reality, frozen in place. I was about to... knock on this door. I... no, I shouldn't... I'm not supposed to engage with the people here.

But... but there's something about all of this...

Suddenly, my sensors start beeping at me... the alarm I set. I... I should get back.

As I walk away, I look back at the house once more, hearing a sound... a whine of sorts.

I look around, trying to find the noise... was it this dog? Do I...

** _(Boney...) _ **

_Enough._ It doesn't matter. I _need_ to get back on time. 

Luckily, it's not too far from here — I sprint towards it quickly. I'd normally use my wings, and fly over, but that isn't exactly possible in this outfit... and it wouldn't be very wise either.

Thankfully, I'm able to make it on time, and I'm not the last one here either. 

"Ah, kid, you're here. We're just waiting for two more idiots, and Fassad himself."

"Good."

"Done anything then?"

"Not much... I've just explored this town. It's more advanced than I thought it would be, given the things I've been told about it."

"Yeah, since the truce, we have been helping them a bit more... only question is, was it a good idea?"

"We can only hope."

Soon enough, the rest of the regiment arrives, and then about ten minutes later... _Fassad._

"Good, you're all here. I didn't want to explain myself twice."

Oh boy... this'll be fun.

"What did you call us here for then, Mr Fassad? You said there was something in the village you needed us to get."

"Yes. In Osohe Castle."

Ah, I've heard of this castle — I haven't been there yet, but according to my map, it's north of the train station. I've heard stories of it being overrun with by _ghosts_ — actual, _real_ ghosts.

"The egg? But... we already tried getting it, and you know how that went."

The egg? Oh, they're referring to the Egg of Light. Apparently, some Pigmasks invaded the castle in an attempt to steal it — it supposedly has a great secret locked in it that could help us. I would feel bad about stealing, but they started this conflict first — this was coming to them one way or another.

But unfortunately, the villagers took the egg, and now we have no idea where it is at all... but that doesn't seem to be the only thing in there.

"Don't remind me." Fassad responds, snarling at the Fierce Pork Trooper. "But that's not what I'm on about. There is another object inside the castle... an object of great power."

"What is it?"

"Under orders of the king, I can't tell you that."

"Then how on Earth are we supposed to find it exactly?"

"Bah! If you're half the soldiers you say you are, you'll know when you see it!"

"That... still doesn't help us very much. And why couldn't you get it?"

"Why do you think? After that mess, they won't let me near the place."

"Alright, but we still don't have much to work on."

"Take the _chimera_ with you." he says, pointing to me. "It'll be able to sense it."

Everyone else's eyes turn to face me. What? Me?! How would I help?! 

The Fierce Pork Trooper sighs, not sure what to make of Fassad's demands. "Alright... we'll check the castle out. Everyone, we move out in half an hour. Prepare yourselves."

And so we do, taking weapons, and some other utilities, like flashlights and rope. As I'm unable to use my arm cannon like this, I take one of the guns that the rest of the Pigmasks use — I have some experience using these, but not too much. Hopefully, I won't need it.

"So, once more, go to that castle, and find that object." spits Fassad.

"Right, but... one question." I ask.

"What is it?" he snarls.

"If we encounter any civilians inside the castle... what do we do?"

"That is a good point, actually." says the Fierce Pork Trooper."

Fassad snarls some more, muttering to himself. "Grr... as much it pains me to say this, don't attack any of the civilians. Or the ghosts — we don't need any more of them getting on us."

"Right. Let's move out!"

And so our squad of seventeen — the fifteen Pigmasks, the Fierce Pork Trooper and myself, all move out. It's gotten dark now — perfect for this kind of activity. We walk towards Osohe Castle, passing a graveyard along the way... ah, this is where that tunnel in the Candaum Underpass emerged at, isn't it?

Being a graveyard, it's certainly a little grim, but we move on. As we do so, I notice that to the right, there's a path of sorts that's completely grassy. Where does that lead to...

_Focus._ Focus on the mission. It's not long before we reach the castle... it looks a bit gothic if you ask me.

The drawbridge is up, so we walk across, right outside the double doors before we stop and I point something out.

"Wouldn't it be risky for all of us to go in at once?"

"You're right, it would. Let's split up into two groups. Half of you are with me, and we're gonna stay out here, and make sure no one else can get near this place. The other half, you're with the kid — find whatever it is Fassad wants us to find."

"And if we encounter any civilians?"

"If they won't less you past, retreat immediately. Don't attack them, unless they attack first. We can't risk anything happening."

"Very well."

"You sure you'll be alright, kid?"

"I have a mission to do. And I won't let the situation impede me in my goals."

The Fierce Pork Trooper looks at me for a moment, before nodding.

We split into two, and I enter the gothic castle, seven Pigmasks with me. 

The inside of the castle has a rather different atmosphere than, say... Prince Poo's palace. The stone walls, the red carpets, and a faint laughter in the distance... it really is haunted.

"God, I hope there aren't ghosts here... I hate ghosts." says one Pigmask.

"Oh, there are. I've seen them myself. Some of them pack a mean punch as well." replies another. 

"Wait, you've been to this castle before?" I ask.

"Oh yeah, Commander — I was part of the squad that came here two years ago."

Interesting... that could be useful.

"So what do you know about this castle then?"

"It's about... about nine floors or so, plus a basement. Pretty big, so it'll probably take us a long time to find whatever we're looking for."

"Great... that's _all_ we need now."

"Wait, Commander... Fassad said you'd be able to sense it. Can you?" asks another.

That's a good question — I have _no_ idea what Fassad was on about, though that seems par for the course. Sense it? I mean... I can sense _PSI,_ but... that's about it. It's worth a shot, I suppose. 

I close my eyes, concentrating as much as I can. This entire castle... I can sense PSI all over it, but it's faint... it's residue, I think. From PSI used a long time ago. 

It's hard to find any one object, because of all the residue, but I keep focusing and — woah! What _is_ that? 

There's something very strange here — it's faint, yes, but stronger than everything else. But that's not the interesting part — no, whatever this object is... it's being _suppressed? _As if there's more to it, a power waiting to be awakened...

"There _is_ something here... an object of great power — great _psychic_ power, in fact. I'm not sure what it is, or where it is, but Fassad wasn't lying — there _is_ something here."

"What are your orders then, Commander?"

"I'd say split up, but if I'm the only one that can sense this thing, that won't be of much use..."

"Sir, can't you like... scan for PSI? Can't you use that?"

Well... I... didn't think of that one...

"... a very good suggestion, thank you."

_Scanning surrounding area for PSI._

_Scan complete._

It's been some time since I've used this, and it's just as freaky as before. Many shades of blue fill my eyes, a little green here and there. While I can't see through the walls, I can see the psychic signatures past them, which lets me examine almost the entirety of the first floor... but it doesn't seem to be here.

"It's not here, not on this floor. Let's press on then."

There's not much in the castle... safe for a few spiders on the carpets. We first head to the basement — it's unlikely to be there, but it's worth looking there. 

There are these strange purple creatures that try and attack us — emphasis on _try. _At first, I think they may be able to use PSI — they make movements similar to how Paula and Fassad both do when they're about to use PK Freeze, but... nothing.

More scary are these weird barrels which seem to be normal at first, but spring to life when I get near one and spray this strange fragrance on me which smells oddly sweet, and makes me feel... awfully... drowsy... 

"Commander? Are you alright?"

With a start, I wake up. "Huh? Yes, I'm fine... must be those barrels."

"Yeah, I remember those things putting a few of us to sleep..." they respond.

"Is it poisonous in any way though?"

"No, it isn't. It's short lived, just annoying. It's like a defence of theirs. The spiders _are_ poisonous though."

"You heard him." I say. "Look out for the spiders... what about those strange pink creatures?"

"We're not sure what's up with them — we think they're trying to use PSI, but don't have the mental strength to do so."

"Hm... I thought as much. Either way, we must press on."

And so we do. The basement doesn't have what we're looking for, so we return to the first floor and climb up the castle.

As we trek upwards, we are attacked by a few spiders and these strange barrels that come to life. They're not too much trouble though — a simple warning shot of our lasers deters most of them. 

The second floor yields nothing either, until we get to one particularly open room with a bunch of ghosts in it.

We all raise our guns immediately, but they don't attack us. In fact... it appears we've run into a _party_ of sorts. 

There's a piano in the room, which one of the ghosts is able to play... despite being incorporeal. It's a rather nice tune...

The other ghosts seem to be eating food that looks rotten and drinking wine — both of which go through them, because they're, well, _ghosts._

Wait, wait, wait — if food and drink go through the ghosts, then why don't their _hands_ go _through_ the keys on a piano? You know what, forget it — we have a mission.

One of the ghosts noticed us and approaches, cackling a little.

"Back for more? What brings you to our haunt? Care for some food?"

"No, thank you... we're looking for a really special object."

"Really special object? Hey, you guys came and took it already, didn't you?"

"No, not that one... a _different_ one."

"Can't say I know what you're on about. Good luck finding whatever it is. But hey, if you fail, you can always join the party!"

"Thanks for the offer."

But I have no intention of doing so, and neither do my troops. At one of the walls, there's a bunch of... _staples, _pressed in such a way that they form a ladder. How strange... but convenient.

We climb up, reaching a chasm, too wide to jump. 

"How did you guys get across here?" one Pigmask asks to the one that came here before.

"I... don't actually know." he responds, scratching his head sheepishly. "I was stationed on the lower floors, so I never made it up here."

Hm... how _are_ we going to get across this? While I _could_ fly across there, that's not possible in this suit, and even if I were to take it off, that wouldn't help the others... wait a minute...

"Alright, everyone, get your ropes."

Slightly confused, they all get them out. "What are we gonna do, sir?"

"Watch." With a few throws, I managed to loop it around the chandelier, and then, with a bit of courage, _swing _across the gap, landing on the other side. 

The other Pigmasks cheer for me a little, before doing the same. A few of their landings are less than elegant, but that's not important now.

We dash across, heading to the fourth floor — and I can feel it much more here... yes, it _is_ here. Somewhere nearby, that's where this object is... let's find it. It must be somewhere around he —

"Hey! What are you lot doing here?"

Suddenly, we all stop in the middle of our tracks, seeing an old man emerge from a door.

We all instinctively raise our weapons, but that was the wrong move — as soon as we do so, this man enters a fighting stance. 

It's a fairly good one at that as well — despite his age, he's evidently familiar with some forms of combat. I must admit — I am somewhat impressed. 

"What are you lot doing back here?! Haven't you taken enough from our town?! Destroyed it enough?! And now you're back!"

What on Earth is this man going on about? 

I raise my hands in surrender, speaking as calmly as I can. "Sir, we mean no harm."

"No harm, my ass! You mean as much harm as that moron of a son I have does!"

This man... he looks familiar — I swear I've seen him before... wait... the _tanks. _When the Pigmasks came to this town... he destroyed one of our_ tanks. _

"Sir... what should we do?" one of them whispers to me.

Now I'm somewhat scared — although he had some help doing so, he's destroyed something rather powerful, and that means he's likely to do the same to us... in fact, let's confirm that.

_'Name: Wess._

_Age: 62._

_Family: One son, Duster._

_A master thief, he and his son have both interfered with the Pigmask Army's plans multiple times, preventing recovery of the Egg of Light. He has also destroyed a Pork Tank — if he intrudes on a mission, approach him with extreme caution, and it is advised to kill him if feasible.'_

"Did what I do to you fools ages ago not teach you anything? You want a second round?"

Grr... it's so close, I can _feel_ it. To be this close to our goal, only to be stopped by one old man? I'm half tempted to just have everyone blast him to one side — no one will ever know, right? It would be simple, quick, and it would eliminate one of our greatest enemies.

But no... that's how _he_ thinks. That's how _they_ think, isn't it? And we can't allow ourselves to stoop to their level. It's a hard decision to make, but eventually... I have my answer.

Keeping my eyes on him, I lower my gun.

"Fall back."

The Pigmasks _and_ the old man all seem surprised upon hearing that.

"But, sir —"

"Fall _back."_

There's no argument after that, so I turn and start walking back, the rest of my regiment following soon after, leaving just the old man up there.

"Sir, why did we retreat?"

"We have our orders. We will not hurt civilians. Still, I'm in no mood to deal with him again, so I think it's best if we leave at once."

With considerable haste, we make our way out, the Fierce Pork Trooper and the rest of the Pigmasks emerging from some bushes across the courtyard, looking surprised while they do.

"Only two hours? You're certainly quick, aren't you, kid?"

The Pigmasks who joined me all look at me, in anticipation... it's my job to do this then.

"Fast, but unfortunately... not successful."

"You couldn't find it?"

"Yes... and _no._ There's definitely _something_ in this castle — Fassad was right about that. But we weren't able to confirm its identity, because we never reached it — we were stopped on the way."

"By who?"

"A man, old, about in his 60's. I believe he's the same one who blew up one of our tanks and hindered the retrieval of the Egg of Light some time ago."

"Oh, _that_ dude... yeah, Fassad's not too keen on him. Says he's been making trouble for him all the time."

"He wouldn't let us through without a fight, so we had no choice but to fall back."

"Hm... well, there's nothing more that can be done then. Let's get back to base."

And so we do, all of us sitting down after a hard mission. Fassad's already gone to sleep thankfully, so that's one piece of bad news that can wait... 

"Alright, all of you get to sleep. We're leaving tomorrow."

"Please tell me we get tomorrow off..." groans one Pigmask.

"I suppose you maggots deserve a break after today, so fine, no training tomorrow."

There's a weak cheer among the Pigmasks, before all of us start heading to beds, claimed by sleep...

But... halfway into the night, I wake up. What.... what time is it... 1:00. I try to get back to sleep for the next half an hour, but I'm unable to... that's strange. While I have sometimes woken up in the middle of the night, I usually don't have issues getting back to sleep...

But... it's just not working. Eventually, I decide that I should do something different... maybe getting out and clearing my head will help.

I put my mask and suit back on, before heading outside. It's very dark now... even more so than before. I hadn't noticed it earlier because I was with the Pigmasks, but I can hear crickets and owls in the distance. There's a faint breeze in the night, one that's refreshing.

I start walking aimlessly... I don't know where I'm going at all. I'm just walking and... seeing where it takes. Through fields... streets... the town square... 

And that's when I stop. I'm facing the path to the beach, but I stop and turn to the right. The graveyard... there was that one path I saw.

I don't know why, but... I start walking in that direction. It's... it's more than just curiosity, it's this... overwhelming _yearning_ to see what... just what it is.

So I keep walking... past the railway... past the bell tower... past these graves... 

Until... it's there. To my right. While the rest of the graveyard is on stone, this part... isn't.

It... this place... there's just one grave here. One lone solitary grave, with a set of... _sunflowers_ beside it.

_"Mom, I..."_

This grave... have I seen it before? No, I couldn't have, I... I've never been here before... that was in a previous life, an _inferior_ life. 

_"I... why did you have to leave?"_

But... I... was it?

_"I'm gonna get revenge. I'm gonna get revenge... for you, Mom."_

And... on the grave... on the grave, there's... there's an inscription.

_'Wife of Flint. Daughter of Alec. Mother of the twins Lucas and —'_

** _System error. Final failsafe activated. Initiating Protocol 31212119._ **

Before I can... my mind is... _stricken, _by... no... no... what is this... no... but, I... I can't! I'm... I'm...

_Reinitialising... 10%... 20%..._

I... what's happening... I... I must... I have to...

_40%... 50%..._

Forget... I have to... let go... let go of...

_80%... 90%... _

_Memory units reengaged. System functions... nominal._

What... what happened? How did I... what's going on? I... what was I doing? I was walking and... now I'm here? Next to this grave... I... what was here for? I... 

I should get back. I... I need sleep, and... whatever this is, I, I shouldn't be here. 

I... I start to walk away. But as I do... I can't help but hear something... _familiar._ A voice that I've heard before... a voice that's as silent as the wind...

_"You must be so tired..."_

** _(... Mother?)_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well then, folks, behold the new longest chapter of BTM! I have a feeling that won't be the last time I'll be saying that either...  

> 
> Funny thing was, I was actually really stumped for ideas with this chapter for the longest time. And then, well... this. The idea of the Masked Man visiting Tazmily is something I've had for a long time, and I've been waiting for the time to use it. 
> 
> Anyway, there's an onslaught of memories for Claus, and quite a bit of conflict for him now. Will this play a part in the story, you ask? Well, if I was a good writer, it would, but I'm not, so it probably won't...
> 
> There is one thing I will clarify though — in Mother 3, the Pigmasks settle into Tazmily and urbanise it after Chapter 3. I've... never seen why the Pigmasks would have so much ease doing so, since the people of Tazmily should have reason to be suspicious.
> 
> In this story, the battles alluded to by Fassad and the Fierce Pork Trooper did actually happen — it was only after a truce was established that they begun to modernize the place (the people of Tazmily did not steal any tech as Claus believes though). Nevertheless, the Pigmasks started the conflict, as we know. 
> 
> I should also mention this — Claus believes that the Pigmasks coming to Tazmily for the first time, and the raid on Osohe, are separate events. Like in Mother 3, both happen at the same time — this is just an extension of Pokey's lies and manipulation. Hope that clears it up.
> 
> Next time, Claus takes a vacation at the Thunder Tower.


	19. Maid of Memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claus heads to the Thunder Tower for a vacation, reuniting with a maid very special to him.

"We'll be reaching the Thunder Tower in about 10 minutes, Commander."

"Thank you."

I take a look out of the window... yes, there it is, as tall as ever. I can't help but crack a smile. After all, I've been looking forward to this for quite some time.

A month has passed since I went to Tazmily, on that mission. But unfortunately, we were unsuccessful in our task — and Fassad certainly wasn't happy about that. In fact, the only person he was more angry at than us, was the old man that we encountered.

In my spare time, I've found myself... _wondering_ about that place. You know, Master Porky told me that it was a barbaric, uncivilised society... but it didn't seem to be entirely like that. I mean, there _were_ plenty of nice people, and it couldn't have _all_ been a facade.

But then again, maybe that's not what he meant. There are good people, but it's the bad ones... few as they may be. A few bad apples spoil the lot, don't they?

Relations with Tazmily have remained peaceful since then, although according to Fassad, the old man we saw has been stirring up a lot of trouble recently... I hope the Pigmasks there will be safe.

I softly chuckle to myself... I'm thinking about my duties and all, when this is supposed to be a vacation! Well, it hasn't started _yet, _I suppose... but still, that can all wait until I get back.

Yes, Master Porky was kind enough to grant me this vacation — he said that he wanted me out of New Pork City for some time. I'm not quite sure why, but it's not my duty to question what he says. Besides, who am I to deny a break from my work? 

I very rarely am allowed a day off my duties, but when I do, I go to the same place I'm going to now — the Thunder Tower. As I've said, the place fascinates me to no end, what with all the experiments with lightning and all.

And of course, I can't forget a certain robotic maid that's stationed there... I wonder what she'll make of this. 

But unlike my past ventures there, it's not just a day off I've gotten — no, in fact, I've gotten two _weeks. _I'm definitely looking forward to this.

There's a sudden lurch of the ship, and the package in my hands shifts a little. Stabilizing myself first, I make sure that the package doesn't fall — I would hate for it to break.

"Sorry about that, Commander! Seems like there's some turbulence up here."

"It's alright. No harm done."

Thankfully, there's no further flying issues, and we land safely at the tower.

"Well, we're here. Enjoy your vacation, sir."

"Thank you. Have a nice day."

My trek through the tower is fairly simple — not at all like my first venture through it, where I had to deal with hoards of robots and batteries.

I turn a corner, entering the main control room, seeing many of the Pigmasks sitting there, doing pretty much... well, _nothing. _And in the centre of the room, also doing nothing, is none other than Colonel Rysan — the same colonel I met during my first visit here.

In fact, I've met her when I've come to the tower before — apparently she was reassigned here when they started using the Thunder Tower to launch lightning at Tazmily Village. 

"Busy day, Colonel?" I ask with some sarcasm.

She turns and faces me. "Ah, Commander, I heard you were coming here. On another break?"

"Indeed — for two weeks."

"Two _weeks?_ That's longer than usual for you. Usually you're only here for a day."

"I suppose the king must have been feeling generous."

"Well, I imagine you've deserve it for all your hard work... well, unlike us."

"Yes... why is no one doing anything here?"

"Well, there's pretty much nothing to do! We've ceased fire on Tazmily, so we're not using the laser. All we're doing now is just the usual maintenance to make sure we're supplying enough electricity to New Pork."

"But I thought you were only here because they needed experienced soldiers to oversee the use of the laser? How come you haven't been reassigned elsewhere?"

"Good question." she says dryly. "It's a waste of all of our talents, if you ask me."

"Remind me, who assigned you here in the first place?"

"Fassad."

Ahhh... see, _that_ makes _so_ much sense now.

"Speaking of Fassad, I heard you went on a mission to Tazmily Village. How did _that_ go?"

"Poorly... Fassad was not pleased, which I'd usually be fine with, but it didn't exactly pan out well for the rest of us. Anyway, I shall be off — if you need me, I will be in the king's playroom."

"Alright... oh wait! I just remembered, when you get to the playroom, you won't find Lil' Miss Marshmallow there."

What? Is she alright?! My heart _plummets, _immediately fearing the worst. 

"What's wrong?"

"Oh, nothing's wrong! She's just having her routine check up. It should only last for another hour or so."

I take a sigh of relief, glad it's nothing serious. "Thank you then. I shall be off."

The rest of my climb is fairly uneventful, and I'm able to reach the playroom. Master Porky was kind enough to allow me to use his playroom for my visit here... he truly is a generous king.

I haven't brought much with me, just a few supplies, as well as this package... hm, I should probably put somewhere now. There's a fridge in the kitchen, full of snacks for Master Porky, so I place the package in there... I hope Miss Marsh will like it.

But either way, she isn't here _now... _I suppose I could entertain myself.

It's only then I notice the ladder in this room which leads to a hole and a room higher up... you know, I've never been up there. 

Curiosity gets the better of me and I scale the ladder, heading into the next room.

Woah... it's massive! There's lots of platforms above me, connected through a series of ladders. In the centre of each platform, is a giant electrical pillar that stretches out of sight.

The room is so big that I can hear my voice echo. I start to climb up, but it becomes quickly apparent that this place is even taller than I thought... where does it end? You know what, I have wings... I could just fly. But that might not be safe here — if there was a burst of lightning, that could potentially harm me.

In fact, I'm not entirely sure I'm supposed to be here but... well, I'm _already_ here, so I may as well keep going.

Eventually, I reach the top, seeing the top of the generator. There's a door at the end... I can see the _sky _through the window. 

"Am I at the top of the tower..." I say out loud.

"INDEED, YOU ARE."

What the...

Immediately, I grab my stick, turning on the spot towards the direction of the voice, my eyes widening when I see where it came from.

Built in the side of the generator, is a robot with blue and red wires, a metallic face, and two tasers for hands. Is that...

"Mr Genator?" I ask.

"THAT IS MY CODE NAME, SERIAL NUMBER: GENE163-1425."

Yes, I'm starting to remember _why_ we renamed him and Miss Marsh.

"AND YOU ARE THE COMMANDER OF THE PIGMASK ARMY, CORRECT?"

"Soon to be, yes." Though less tense now, I still don't lower my stick — my first experience with Mr Genator is still fresh in my mind, a concern I decide to vocalise.

"Please don't tell me you're going to attack me..."

"I WILL NOT. MY JOB IS TO GUARD THIS GENERATOR FROM INTRUDERS AND PEOPLE WHO TAMPER WITH THIS GENERATOR. AS YOU ARE NEITHER OF THOSE THINGS, I WILL NOT ATTACK YOU."

A blunt way of putting it, but I'm not complaining. "Well, that's good to hear... so, have you had any intruders?"

"NONE SINCE I WAS INSTALLED HERE."

Well, that's also good to hear, though I suspect he may have some if the enemy ever finds out about this tower and tries to disable it.

"Does anyone else visit you?"

"NONE. YOU ARE THE FIRST."

"That's a bit sad..."

"FOR THAT MATTER, WHY ARE YOU HERE?"

"Oh, well... I was just exploring the place. Actually, where does that door lead to?" I ask, pointing to it.

"THE TOP OF THE TOWER. IT IS VERY DANGEROUS THERE, NOT IN THE LEAST BECAUSE OF THE HEIGHT. I WOULD ADVISE YOU TO TURN BACK."

The very top? The view would certainly be quite nice... but I'm not in the mood to potentially take a 200 metre drop, so I think I'll take that advice.

"Thank you — I'll be going. Goodbye then."

"GOODBYE."

I head back to the playroom, having a look at the time... hm, it's been more than an hour. Miss Marsh should be back by now... wait, I can hear something below. Someone's climbing the ladder.... that must be her.

My first thought is to simply wait for her to climb up and then greet her, but then... I have a _different_ idea. 

I kneel behind one of the car, making sure I can't be seen... her metallic climbing becomes louder and louder, until she finally emerges. 

She straightens her skirt out, looking across the room in what seems to be confusion. 

"... HOW STRANGE. THE COMMANDER SHOULD BE HERE BY NOW... PERHAPS HE IS RUNNING LATE. IN WHICH CASE, I SHOULD BE ABLE TO MAKE SOME LUNCH FOR HIM IN TIME FOR HIS ARRIVAL... I'M SURE HE WILL BE HUNGRY."

I smile behind my hiding spot... it's kind of her to do that, especially after she's just had that check up. And she's absolutely right, actually — I _am_ hungry.

She heads into the kitchen on the side, and I follow behind, making sure she doesn't see me, crouching behind the door.

She starts to gather some ingredients — I think she's making some steak. I do have a bit of a hankering for it... 

And after getting the steak, she places it on a board, before nonchalantly calling out. "COMMANDER, IT CANNOT BE COMFORTABLE CROUCHING BEHIND THERE."

My eyes widen as I slowly stand up, seeing Miss Marsh holding a spatula in one hand, and looking at me with what seems to be amusement.

"... how long did you know I was here?"

"I DID NOT. HOWEVER, I CONCLUDED THAT YOU MUST HAVE BEEN HERE."

"...how?"

"IT WAS THE ONLY LOGICAL CONCLUSION TO MAKE WHEN I PICKED UP A HEART RATE AT 100 BEATS PER MINUTE IN THIS ROOM WITH NO ONE IN SIGHT."

I... damn it, I completely forgot about that...

"Well... I feel like a fool..."

"WHAT WERE YOU DOING?"

"I was _trying_ to surprise you."

"OH... MY APOLOGIES, COMMANDER." She drops her head a little.

I crack a smile and laugh at that. "It's alright. Besides, I'm just glad to see you again! It's been... well, I don't even know! A very long time."

"IT'S NICE TO SEE YOU AS WELL, COMMANDER. HOW HAVE YOU BEEN?" she says, sitting down with me at a table in the playroom.

"I've been fine, just training and all, though I did go on a mission to Tazmily Village."

"TAZMILY VILLAGE? YOUR PLACE OF BIRTH, CORRECT? HOW WAS THAT?"

"It was... an experience, to say the least. I've learned more about the place on that mission than I ever have before."

She nods in understanding. "I SEE... IT APPEARS YOU'VE BEEN BUSY."

"How have you been then?"

"I HAVE BEEN PERFECTLY FINE. I MONITOR THIS PLAYROOM, AND PERFORM HIS HIGHNESS'S DUTIES WHENEVER HE COMES HERE."

"I imagine that's your biggest priority then."

"ACTUALLY... IT IS NOT."

"Oh? What is then?"

"THAT IS." She says, pointing to the yo-yo in the glass case. Ah, I remember seeing this — this was Master Porky's prized yo-yo, which he took from Ness...

"This yo-yo... it's a very special one."

"INDEED. I HAVE BEEN GIVEN ORDERS TO GUARD IT WITH MY LIFE. IF ANYONE TRIES TO TAKE IT, I AM TO WARN THEM FIRST, AND SHOULD THEY MAKE ANOTHER ATTEMPT, I AM TO ELIMINATE THEM."

_"Eliminate _them? That seems a little harsh, doesn't it?"

"PERHAPS. BUT THOSE ARE MY ORDERS. HIS HIGHNESS OBVIOUSLY PRIZES THIS YO-YO A GREAT DEAL."

"So what would you do if _I_ tried to take it?"

"I WOULD SAY MY CLAW WOULD BE SOMEWHERE AROUND YOUR NECK, COMMANDER."

"Okay... that's a little scary..." And not in the least because I know she's being _serious_ about that as well.

"THAT _WAS_ THE INTENTION... THOUGH I HOPE IT DOES NOT COME TO THAT. AFTER ALL, I AM SUPPOSED TO BE DOING THE OPPOSITE, AND I HAVE BEEN LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING YOU AGAIN."

"I've been looking forward to seeing you again as well... if only so I can do this."

She gives me a puzzled look "DO WHAT, COM —"

But she doesn't need an answer to that question, when I seize her by the waist and hug her for _all_ she's worth — so that's a _lot_ then. Although taken aback at first, her body relaxes after, and she returns it.

"I've missed you quite a lot, you know..." I murmur.

"... REALLY?"

"Yep... it's pretty lonely at New Pork... but I'm glad I could see you again, even if it's just for two weeks."

"... as am I, Commander."

The two of us stay like that for a while... neither one of us really wanting to move, but Miss Marsh eventually starts speaking, recognizing that we can't stay here forever.

"AS MUCH AS I WOULD LIKE TO STAY HERE, COMMANDER, WOULDN'T YOU LIKE SOMETHING TO EAT?"

"Well, I suppose you're right."

"I WAS PREPARING SOME STEAK FOR YOU. WOULD THAT BE ALRIGHT?"

"That would be just fine, thank you."

"I SHALL CONTINUE MAKING IT THEN."

"Here, let me help out!"

"NONSENSE, COMMANDER. YOU MUST BE TIRED AFTER YOUR JOURNEY HERE AND THE CLIMB UP THE TOWER."

"I insist — besides, it's fun to cook with you!"

"... WELL, IF YOU INSIST."

So the two of us go into the kitchen, preparing some food... just like old times.

I start seasoning the steak with salt and pepper, while she goes to the fridge, looking for some butter. 

"COMMANDER? IS THIS YOURS?"

I stop the seasoning, and turn to see what's she's talking about. She has the package I put in the fridge in her hands.

"Oh, yeah, that's mine — I made something at New Pork City yesterday, and I wanted to bring it for you to see how well I've done with it." I say while continuing to season the food, reaching for a lemon.

"I DON'T THINK THAT'S NECESSARY, COMMANDER. I CAN CONCLUDE THAT YOU'LL HAVE DONE JUST FINE, BASED ON YOUR SKILL.'

While she says that, I squeeze the lemon a bit too hard, sending the juice flying all over my face. Miss Marsh approaches me, holding a cloth.

"THEN AGAIN, YOU _DO_ SEEM TO HAVE A KNACK FOR PROVING ME WRONG." She says with what seems to be amusement on her face.

Taking it, I wipe my face while laughing in embarrassment at that, taking another lemon. "My bad..."

"BUT I THINK WHATEVER IT IS YOU HAVE MADE, IT WILL BE EXCELLENT. THAT BEING SAID, YOU _DID_ WISH FOR ME TO LOOK AT THIS."

"Oh yeah, but not _yet_ actually."

"HM?"

"It's something special... if you don't mind, I'd like to leave it for another day."

She looks very puzzled at that, but nods and places it back. "AS YOU WISH, COMMANDER."

And so begins my holiday. The days go by, and I spend some time on the lower floors with the Pigmasks, but most of my time is spent in Master Porky's playroom. 

There's lots of toys here, so I make use of them... it's strange, now that I think about it. Playing with toys, relaxing, having a _vacation... _I'm acting as if I were... well, a _child. _

And that's what makes it so strange — for what may be the first time in my life, I'm actually acting my age. Like those children at Tazmily.

I keep myself adequately amused, but I also spend some time practicing my PSI as well, particularly PK Love. I know Master Porky said I should only use it with him and Fassad present, but Miss Marsh knows I can use it as well — she _was_ there the first time, so it should be alright. 

Predictably though, my attempts don't get me anywhere. 

"PK Love Alpha... PK Love Alpha... PK Love Alpha... why am I not surprised?" I sigh, kicking the wall in frustration before sitting down on a chair.

At this, Miss Marsh stops her cleaning, facing me.

"COMMANDER, I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU ARE FRUSTRATED, BUT I WOULD APPRECIATE IT IF YOU DID _NOT_ DESTROY THIS PLAYROOM BECAUSE OF THAT."

"Ah... my bad. I'm sorry."

"IT IS QUITE ALRIGHT. WHAT ARE YOU DOING ANYWAY?"

"I'm trying to use PK Love. Emphasis on _trying."_

"HM... IF I RECALL CORRECTLY, YOU USED THAT PSI THE FIRST TIME WE BOTH CAME HERE, CORRECT?"

"Yes, I did."

"SO WHY ARE YOU STRUGGLING TO USE IT NOW?"

"I... I don't know. Ever since that first time, I've _never_ been able to use it again. And I've been trying for _months_now."

"HM... HOW ODD. YOU PICK UP ON THINGS REMARKABLY QUICKLY... I'VE NEVER SEEN OR HEARD OF YOU FAILING LEARN SOMETHING YOU'VE PUT YOUR MIND TO — AND YES, COMMANDER, BEFORE YOU SAY OTHERWISE, I _AM_ INCLUDING COOKING IN THAT. YOU MADE MANY STRIDES IN JUST FOUR MONTHS."

"Well, thanks, but evidently, I've hit a break wall, so to say."

"PERHAPS YOU SHOULD TAKE A BREAK. AFTER ALL, THAT _IS_ WHY YOU'RE HERE, ISN'T IT? AND PUSHING YOURSELF BEYOND WHAT YOU'RE CAPABLE OF WON'T ACHIEVE MUCH."

"I guess you're right..."

"WOULD YOU LIKE SOME TEA?"

Tea? Huh... I've never heard of that. "What's tea?"

She pauses for a second, trying to think of how to answer that.

"WELL... IT IS A BEVERAGE MADE FROM ADDING BOILING WATER TO LEAVES, OFTEN WITH MILK AND SUGAR ADDED."

"That... doesn't sound too nice." I say with a grimace on my face.

"IT IS SOMEWHAT DIFFICULT TO DESCRIBE, BUT I ASSURE YOU THAT IT WILL LIKELY TASTE NICER THAN I'M MAKING IT SOUND."

"I'll try it then."

She goes off, and I hear the sound of a boiling kettle for a while. When she comes back, she has a cup in hand, with a brown sort of liquid in it.

"Interesting..."

"BE CAREFUL, COMMANDER. IT IS HOT."

I take a sip of it and... you know, this is actually pretty good! A little hot on the tongue, and it could use some more sugar, but I like it!

"This is... nice, actually."

"I'M GLAD TO HEAR IT. I WAS CONCERNED YOU MIGHT NOT, SINCE PEOPLE YOUR AGE GENERALLY DON'T DRINK THIS UNTIL THEY'RE A LITTLE OLDER."

"But then again, I've never exactly acted my age, have I?"

"I SUPPOSE NOT..."

"Still, I'd like to try more of it. Are there any other kinds of flavors?"

She laughs at that. "FAR TOO MANY TO COUNT."

And from then on, every day at 4:00, I have some tea — there's a bunch of different kinds according to Miss Marsh, and I'm eager to try them all. Some of them aren't too good like green tea, but then others are amazing!

In fact, on one particular day, I discover one of my favourite kinds.

"So what's this particular kind of tea then, Miss Marsh?"

"IT IS CALLED EARL GREY, COMMANDER."

"Earl grey... I think it might be the best one yet!"

"I AM GLAD TO HEAR IT, COMMANDER. WOULD YOU CARE FOR SOME MORE?"

But before I can answer, I hear the sounds of some footsteps underneath.

"Someone's coming up here..."

I stand up in front of Miss Marsh and raise my arm cannon, pointing it at the top of the ladder, ready to blast whoever emerges, and Miss Marsh raises her claw as well.

A Pigmask emerges from the ladder, huffing and puffing a little.

"Oh, sir, there you — OH MY PORK!" He raises his arms in surrender, clearly scared out of his wits.

Upon realising it's not a threat, I lower my arm cannon, and Miss Marsh drops her claw.

"Sorry about that. What's the issue?"

"Well, sir, we've got a situation. One of the Clayman have broken loose and we need some help containing it."

I'm about to say that I'll be right there, but before I can, Miss Marsh interjects.

"I'M AFRAID THAT WON'T BE POSSIBLE RIGHT NOW. IT IS THE COMMANDER'S TEA TIME AND SO HE WILL BE UNABLE TO."

"His... tea time?"

"YES. IN FUTURE, PLEASE REFRAIN FROM DISTURBING THE COMMANDER DURING THIS TIME."

"But it's an emergency! We must go right now!" they say, taking a step forward.

"PLEASE STEP AWAY FROM THE COMMANDER. AS I HAVE SAID, IT IS THE COMMANDER'S TEA TIME NOW AND SO HE WILL BE UNABLE TO ATTEND UNTIL HE IS FINISHED." She replies, raising her voice a little.

"Forget the tea! This is an emergency! We need to go now!" they shout in exasperation, moving towards me... 

"What... hurgh..."

... only to be stopped by Miss Marsh's _claw._

"NO ONE DISTURBS THE COMMANDER'S TEA TIME." she says in a eerily soft voice.

"But..."

"I _SAID._ _NO_ ONE. _DISTURBS. _THE COMMANDER'S TEA TIME." 

"O... okay..." 

They slowly back away from Miss Marsh, then run away as fast as they can, climbing down the ladder at ludicrous speed.

What... just _happened?_

I eye Miss Marsh with a look of amusement, which she notices, sitting down on the other side of the table.

"IS THE TEA TO YOUR SATISFACTION, COMMANDER?"

"Very, but... was that necessary?"

"OF COURSE. THE PRIVACY OF YOUR TEA TIME IS OF THE UTMOST IMPORTANCE TO ME AND I WILL NOT LET A SINGLE PERSON DISRUPT IT UNTIL IT HAS FINISHED."

I laugh at that. "You're very dedicated, aren't you?"

"I MUST BE, COMMANDER, OTHERWISE I WOULD NOT DO MY JOB EFFECTIVELY."

I laugh once more and drink the rest of my tea, swallowing it with a gulp. "In all seriousness though, I really should get down there and help them out."

"TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF, COMMANDER."

The Clayman is fairly easily taken care off, and we all have a laugh over Miss Marsh's antics — the Colonel has some exasperation upon realising that this is the _second_ time Miss Marsh's obedience to her programming has caused issues. 

Either way, I have the feeling none of the Pigmasks will be going up to the playroom around four anytime soon... 

Life goes on, even if it is fairly uneventfully. But, I don't mind. After the mission to Tazmily, and building the Absolutely Safe Capsule, I could use some time to unwind. 

And honestly, I'm content to just spend the days here with Miss Marsh. I even start to develop a routine of sorts.

When I wake up, it's usually to the sound of her making breakfast — she's always up earlier than me. So every morning, I go into the kitchen and greet her with a hug before having breakfast.

I spend my mornings either in the playroom, playing with the various toys, or on the lower floors with the Pigmasks, and then Miss Marsh and I will both make lunch.

In the afternoons, that's when I like to practice using PSI, and I do so until I inevitably get to PK Love, try using it, fail, and repeat until I get so frustrated that I'm forced to stop. 

Thankfully, that usually happens around 4, so Miss Marsh is always there with some tea to calm me down, and the two of us sit there, talking about various things — it's here where Miss Marsh's snarky side comes out, and I've forgotten just how much I adore her wit.

Then, the evenings come, and the two of us make dinner, before night falls.

It reminds me so much of the time I spent in New Pork City with her... cooking with her, talking — heck, we're both sleeping in the same room again, or in her case, recharging.

I'll miss all of this when I go back...

But the days go on, without much happening.

Until _one_ particular day. It's a special day for sure, and all day I wait for Miss Marsh to mention it... but she _doesn't. _She goes on as if it were just a regular day. 

So... I finally bring it up after tea.

"Miss Marsh... I'm surprised."

"ABOUT WHAT?"

"All day, and you haven't even mentioned it once. You haven't mentioned what day this is. Did you think I wouldn't know?"

"..."

"Well?"

"... I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU ARE ON ABOUT, COMMANDER."

"Oh, come on, Miss Marsh! You didn't think I'd forget what today was, did you?"

"..."

"I even prepared for this and everything!"

"..."

"Well, if you're going to feign ignorance, than I'll just say it — happy birthday, Miss Marsh."

"... COMMANDER?"

"It is your birthday today, isn't it? Two years ago, that's when we first switched you on, right?"

"IT IS..."

"How come you haven't mentioned it all, all day?"

"WELL... I DIDN'T THINK IT WAS NECESSARY. THERE IS NOTHING SPECIAL ABOUT THIS DAY... AND I DID NOT WANT TO MAKE YOU FEEL OBLIGATED TO DO ANYTHING. AFTER ALL, YOU _ARE_ HERE TO RELAX AND ENJOY YOURSELF."

"Miss Marsh, of _course_ there's something special about this day! You've been alive for two years! And by celebrating your birthday, I would be enjoying myself!"

"Commander, I... YOU SAID YOU HAD PREPARED FOR THIS?"

"Oh yeah — let me show you!"

I dash into the kitchen and open the fridge, taking it back into the main room, sitting back with her.

"THIS... THIS IS WHAT YOU HAD IN THE FRIDGE, ISN'T IT?"

"Yep. I think it's time for you to have a look at it." I say, passing it to her.

"COMMANDER... you didn't have to do this."

"I'd be a horrible friend if I didn't. Go on, open it."

She carefully unwraps it, revealing a _cake_ underneath.

It's no ordinary cake as well — I made it to look like Miss Marsh's face, with some grey food colouring, to make it look metallic. There's some white icing drawn in circles to look like her eyes, and for her hair, some yellow icing.

She looks at in silence for a few minutes, taken aback by it. "I... HOW... HOW LONG DID THIS TAKE FOR YOU TO MAKE, COMMANDER?"

"Does it matter?"

"I..."

"How... how does it look?"

"IT... IT'S BEAUTIFUL, COMMANDER... I'M... I'M FLATTERED THAT YOU WOULD HAVE SPENT ALL THAT TIME FOR ME."

"Well, you're worth every second of it."

"THANK YOU, BUT... YOU KNOW I CAN'T EAT, DON'T YOU?"

My face drops a little. "I... I know you can't... I wasn't sure what to give you, because I know you don't really need anything... so I thought you being able to see how far I've gotten with my cooking thanks to you would be a good present instead. I'm sorry that I couldn't get you something more meaningful."

I'm about to say more, but I don't get the chance to before Miss Marsh tightly wraps her arms around me. "COMMANDER... it's a great present."

"I'm glad you like it..."

"SHALL WE CUT IT THEN?"

"Sure! Oh, but first..."

I reach for two candles I brought, placing them on top of the cake.

"REALLY, COMMANDER? AREN'T YOU A BIT TOO OLD FOR THIS?" She says, rolling her eyes, a hand on her hip.

"Are _you? _You _are_ only two years old."

"... A FAIR POINT."

I light the two candles, both of them sparkling before I sing.

"Happy birthday to you... 

Happy birthday to you...

Happy birthday dear Miss Marsh...

Happy birthday to you!"

... I'm a very bad singer... 

Still, Miss Marsh doesn't seem to mind and she blows out both of the candles, a little smoke flying in the air.

"Did you make a wish then?"

"A WISH?"

"Yeah! When you blow out your candles, you're supposed to make a wish."

"THIS SEEMS VERY SILLY, COMMANDER. THERE IS NO EVIDENCE TO SUGGEST THAT SUCH A WISH WOULD ACTUALLY COME TRUE."

"Maybe not, but it's part of the fun. Please?"

"... for you then... HM... I BELIEVE I HAVE ONE. IT IS —"

"Wait, you can't tell me! If you tell anyone what it is, it won't come true."

"VERY WELL. I CAN ONLY HOPE THAT IT DOES HAPPENS. LET'S CUT THIS CAKE THEN."

She takes a knife and cuts through the cake, placing a slice sideways onto a plate. The filling's vanilla with pink and white bits embedded in it. Upon examining it closer, she realises what it is.

"MARSHMALLOWS? REALLY, COMMANDER?" She says with a smirk.

"I... thought it was clever."

She picks up a piece of the cake, holding it up to me. "WHY DON'T YOU TRY IT, COMMANDER?"

I take a bite out of it. "It's really good!"

"I'M NOT SURPRISED. AFTER ALL, _YOU _MADE THIS."

We spend a bit more time talking, before she goes quiet and makes a request. 

"COMMANDER... IF YOU DO NOT MIND... might we sit outside?"

"Outside? Sure."

There's a balcony situated on the south wall of the playroom, which we both head to. From all the way up here, I can see so many things... Club Titiboo... the highways... and of course, the Chimera Laboratory.

Night has fallen and the stars are even out, many of them up in the sky.

"The stars... they seem pretty bright tonight, don't they?"

"INDEED... TODAY HAS BEEN... VERY DIFFERENT."

It's only then that I remember something — this is her _second_ birthday... but what did she do on her _first?_

"Miss Marsh, how... how _did_ you spend your last birthday?"

She looks at me in confusion. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN?"

"What did you do on your last birthday?"

"WELL... NOTHING."

"Nothing? How?!"

"IT... IT WAS BEFORE I WAS ASSIGNED TO BE WITH YOU AT NEW PORK CITY. I WAS THEREFORE NOT ACTIVE AT THE TIME, AS I HAD NO PURPOSE... I THEREFORE SPENT IT IN A STORAGE UNIT."

"That's horrible! That's no way to spend a birthday!"

"WELL, HOW DID YOU SPEND YOUR LAST TWO BIRTHDAYS, COMMANDER?"

"I spent them both with my friends, with the people I cared about..."

"THAT SOUNDS... NICE." she muses.

"And you should have been able to do the same as well."

"IT IS NO ISSUE FOR ME, COMMANDER. AFTER ALL, I AM A ROBOT. MY PURPOSE IS TO SERVE WHOEVER I'M PROGRAMMED TO. AND... I AM CONTENT WITH THAT."

"But don't you ever think you're more than that? Don't you ever wonder if there's more than just... serve whoever you're programmed to?"

"I COULD ASK THE SAME TO YOU, COMMANDER. YOU SERVE HIS HIGHNESS, AS HIS FRIEND AND A LEADER. THAT WAS WHY YOU WERE BROUGHT BACK, WASN'T IT? ISN'T YOUR PURPOSE IN LIFE THE SAME AS MINE? TO SERVE YOUR MASTER?"

I'm about to open my mouth to respond, until I realise... she's absolutely _right. _She's right. I serve a master. I do what I'm told to. I don't hesitate. And combined with all the machinery in me... but no, I'm... I'm not a robot. I'm _not._

But... am I? In the most _literal_ definition of the word, no, I'm _not_ a robot. But _functionally? _I've been told to become the Commander, and so I will. But... do I have a life _outside_ that? No... I really don't, do I? I've had occasional outings with my regiment, yes, but I don't think that constitutes a life outside the army.

In fact... the most I ever had was... well, _Miss Marsh. _The four months we spent together, and the cooking lessons she gave me... that was something outside just training to be the Commander. Something I enjoyed. But that was in the past and now... 

What makes _me_ different? The future. A robot... doesn't have any goals. A robot... serves for eternity. And I have reasons for the things I want to do, don't I?

"You are right... in that respect, I am very much like you. But I serve... because I _want_ to. I want to serve Master Porky, because he is a wise and gracious ruler. I want to become Commander to _end_ this war, and bring peace to all those who deserve it. And I have an vision for the future."

"WHAT IS IT?"

"One day... I want to _leave_ the army."

"YOU INTEND TO LEAVE?"

"Yeah... I mean, I can't be in there forever, can I? I'll get old, and I won't be able to fight as well as I can now. Plus... there's not much point in having a Commander, if there isn't a war to be fought."

"SO WHAT WOULD YOU DO THEN?"

"Well... I've been thinking of places to retire. Maybe I'm a little young to be thinking that far, but... I've had a few places in mind. And I think I know exactly where I'd want to go."

"WHERE WOULD THAT BE?"

"Right here."

"HERE? BUT... why?"

"Because it's where _you_ are, Miss Marsh."

She goes completely silent.

"WHY... WOULD THAT BE A FACTOR FOR YOU? I... I AM A ROBOT. MY SAFETY, MY PRESENCE, MY WELLBEING... you don't need to worry about those."

"Miss Marsh... you say you're just a robot. But you're _more_ than that to _me._ Don't you have goals? Don't you have something you'd like to do, and a reason to do it?"

"I... I DO NOT... BUT... I HAVE BEEN THINKING THESE PAST WEEKS."

"Oh? What about?"

"COMMANDER, YOU... YOU WERE SAYING THAT IT WAS LONELY AT NEW PORK CITY BY YOURSELF, WEREN'T YOU?"

"Yeah..."

"I..." She pauses for a second, as if not knowing what to say next. "I SUPPOSE... I HAVE FELT THE SAME HERE AS WELL."

"What do you mean?"

"IT IS... LONELY HERE AS WELL. I... I DON'T GET MANY VISITORS HERE EITHER, SO I... I KNOW WHAT YOU MEAN. WHAT IT'S LIKE TO BE... ALONE."

"But doesn't Master Porky come here occasionally?"

"NOT VERY OFTEN... AND EVEN WHEN HE DOES, I DON'T TALK TO HIM VERY MUCH, IF AT ALL. NOT IN THE SAME WAY WE'RE DOING RIGHT NOW. IN FACT..." She chuckles somewhat sadly. "I BELIEVE I HAVE EXCHANGED MORE WORDS WITH YOU IN THE PAST MINUTE THAN WITH HIS HIGHNESS ACROSS ALL HIS VISITS."

That's... she's been even more alone than me. At least I had my regiment to interact with, but she... she's had virtually _no_ one.

"Miss Marsh... I'm so sorry to hear that."

"YOU DON'T NEED TO BE, BECAUSE... I'M HAPPY YOU COULD BE HERE, COMMANDER. I.. I enjoy your company..."

I'm taken aback by that. "Miss Marsh... I enjoy your company as well."

"I'M... GLAD TO HEAR THAT. THIS PAST WEEK... IT HAS REMINDED ME OF... old times."

"Me too."

"AND... IT HAS BEEN NICE TO SEE HOW YOU HAVE GROWN IN ALL YOUR FIELDS."

"Except for PSI... I've been trying for so long, and yet... I'm still nowhere closer than I was before."

She puts a finger to her chin, as if in deep thought. "COMMANDER... I BELIEVE YOUR ISSUE IS THAT YOU ARE TRYING TOO HARD. PERHAPS, YOU NEED TO TRY LESS. YOU'RE TREATING THIS LIKE EVERYTHING ELSE, WHERE CONTINUED PRACTICE WILL GIVE YOU MASTERY. BUT PERHAPS... A DIFFERENT OUTLOOK IS NEEDED."

"What do you mean?"

"THIS PSI IS CALLED PK _LOVE, _IS IT NOT? WOULD IT NOT MAKE MORE SENSE FOR YOU TO CONCENTRATE ON THE THINGS YOU ENJOY IN THIS WORLD? THE THINGS THAT MAKE YOU HAPPY?"

I concentrate, but rather than just trying to use it, I take her advice. I think about all the things I have, the things that make me happy... the things I hold dear to my heart. 

The time I have spent with my regiment and the Fierce Pork Trooper and how we've all grown stronger together...

The time I have spent with Dr Andonuts, assisting him with all his creations, and learning so much about science...

The time I've spent with Master Porky, my best friend, who I owe my very _existence_ to...

And... the time I've spent with Miss Marsh, who I... 

All of those things... they all swirl around in my mind... and then...

I feel... a _spark. _A spark of... something. Something familiar. Something warm. Something _powerful. _

Just like that first time... that feeling burns _deep_ within my heart, ready for _release._

"PK Love Alpha."

A swivel of multicoloured hexagons appear from my hands, shooting off into the night sky, before bursting into colourful light... I... 

Miss Marsh looks at them, before speaking up. "THERE, YOU SEE? PERHAPS ALL YOU NEEDED WAS A DIFFERENT APPROACH." 

"I can't believe it! I... I actually did it! For the first time since I've been here... I've actually used done it! Let me try it again... PK Love Alpha!"

This time, those thoughts are stronger within me, and I _pour_ them into my mind, letting them fuel myself. Once again, the hexagons appears, brighter and stronger, exploding in a spectacularly light show which seems to enthral Miss Marsh. 

I try it a few more times, and it... every time, it works! I've... I've never been able to do it at will for months, and now... now I can! 

"I... I still can't believe it..."

"A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE CAN OFTEN HELP, DON'T YOU THINK?"

"Miss Marsh... have I ever told you that you're amazing?"

She gives a soft laugh. "ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS, COMMANDER, SOMETIMES MULTIPLE TIMES IN THE SAME SENTENCE." she replies, with some humour in her voice.

"Really?" I rub my head sheepishly.

"INDEED. WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO TELL YOU HOW MANY?" she laughs.

"I'll pass... but I'll say it again because it bears repeating — you are _amazing."_

"THANK YOU..."

"You're welcome."

There's a moment of silence between the two of us before she speaks up.

"THIS BIRTHDAY, SO TO SPEAK... I DO NOT HAVE MANY REFERENCE POINTS... but I would say it's the best one I've had."

"Really? I'm glad I could make it enjoyable for you."

"YOU MAKE... _EVERYTHING_ ENJOYABLE FOR ME, COMMANDER. WHEN I AM WITH YOU... I CAN'T HELP BUT FEEL THAT EACH DAY IS... DIFFERENT. A BREAK IN THE MONOTONY OF MY LIFE."

"You know... I'd say the exact same thing about you."

She leans in and hugs me. "THANK YOU..."

"You're welcome... it really wasn't much to do."

She shakes her head a little. "NOT FOR THIS... NOT JUST FOR THIS. THANK YOU... for everything."

It was... there. Right there and then, that I knew that this feeling... I would never forget it. I would never forget what it was like, what it meant, and who was responsible for it.

It was there... that I made a vow to myself. That no matter where I am, no matter what I'm doing... I would protect her with my life.

Because she's more than just a robot to me. She's so much more than that. 

She's all the happiness in the world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Best. Ship. Ever. Except Ness/Paula, of course — I mean, that's just unbeatable. 
> 
> Yes, this chapter was essentially a giant excuse for me to write a bunch of Masked Man/Marshmallow fluff, and well, I have no regrets. 
> 
> Also, isn't it funny that Chapter 9 was all about the Masked Man having a vacation and Chapter 10 was about his birthday, and here we are on Chapter 19 (9+10), which is about a vacation anda birthday? I'd say I planned that, but that would be giving myself far too much credit.
> 
> I honestly don't have much to say, apart from one more thing — that joke about the tea? I have had that in mind for five months. And I have been waiting oh so long to use it.  

> 
> Next time... well, you know what? Let's keep that one a secret.


End file.
